…there are times it is safer, not just easier, to take a tailwind landing than a headwind…
I know! I remember when I was a young pilot in the right seat of a SE-210 in the first seventies performing night approaches to LIMJ. We preferred to land on Rwy 29, also with 5 Kts tail wind rather than to perform the particular circling for Rwy 11. But we used to brief “We will deploy ‘Le parachute’ after landing!”
But in this case:
Accident: American B738 at Kingston on Dec 22nd 2009, overran runway on landing 03:22Z Dec 23rd
MKJP 230325Z 32011KT (bell) 22000 (2200?)+SHRA (bell) BKN014 FEW016CB (bell) SCT030 BKN100 21/19 Q1014 RETSRA (bell)
MKJP 230300Z 32008KT 3000 +SHRA BKN014 FEW016CB SCT030 BKN100 21/20 Q1014 RETSRA
While the aircraft descended to 4000 feet the approach controller advised the winds were now from 320 degrees at 15 knots (bell) and queried whether the crew was still to land on runway 12 which the crew replied to in the affirmative
The aircraft was almost at Max Landing Weight.
7) The flight crew did not use the RNAV (GPS) Rwy 30 approach, and land into wind on runway 30.
10) The flight crew elected to land with flap 30, rather than the flap 40 recommended for short field and tailwind wind Landing
14) The aircraft crossed the runway threshold 20 feet above the ideal height, and landed long.
19) The aircraft touched down at 4,100 feet (at 140 kts = almost 20 sec [begin to count 1001, 1002, 1003,….!!!!!]) from the runway threshold
22) There was a 14 knot tailwind component when the aircraft landed.
24) The flight crew did not conduct a go-around when the long landing made this necessary.
26) There was reduced friction on the runway, as evidenced by the longitudinal deceleration rate recorded on the FDR. The presence of melted rubber balls on some of the aircraft’s main landing gear tires could also be an indication of reduced friction.
3. The captain’s visibility may have been impeded by the heavy rain on the windshield (bell: flooded rwy?), and the rapid movement of the windshield wipers.
And as you play the ball, not the player: we must learn from this!
http://www.pprune.org/8476954-post71.html
http://www.pprune.org/8477548-post79.html
Don' t conduct T.O. and Landings (operations) in the proximity of TS/Cbs!!!