On October 20, 2025, at 3:52 a.m., an ACT Airlines Boeing 747 freighter was descending into Hong Kong International Airport. Everything about the flight was textbook. The weather was clear, the runway was dry, and the ILS (Instrument Landing System) approach was perfectly aligned. The first officer was at the controls, with the captain monitoring.
But as the massive “Queen of the Skies” touched down, a silent, mechanical ghost entered the cockpit.
A Flawless Start
The touchdown on Runway 7 Left was normal. The spoilers deployed to kill lift, and the auto brakes began their rhythmic slowing of the heavy aircraft. The crew moved into their post-landing routine:
Engines 2 and 3 were brought into 95% reverse thrust.
Engine 1 was set to idle reverse.
Engine 4 was “placarded”—it had a known mechanical issue from earlier that day, meaning its reverser was disabled and it was supposed to stay at idle.
The Swerve into Chaos
Suddenly, the “Auto Brakes” message flashed on the crew alerting system. This meant the system had disconnected, a common occurrence if a pilot taps the manual brakes. The captain took control, a standard move as the plane slows down.
Then, the unthinkable happened.
While the crew was focused on decelerating, the Number 4 engine thrust lever—on its own—moved to the full forward position. In a heartbeat, that outer engine spooled up to 107% thrust. Imagine a rowboat where three people are rowing backward with all their might, while a giant on the far right suddenly starts rowing forward at full speed. The 747 veered violently to the left. The asymmetric thrust was so powerful that no amount of braking could keep the plane on the concrete.
The Tragic Intersection
The aircraft barreled off the runway at taxiway Charlie 6. In a cruel twist of fate, it collided with a stationary airport security vehicle parked in a designated observation point. The impact sent the vehicle into the sea, tragically claiming the lives of the two security officers inside.
The 747 continued through the perimeter fence and into the water. While all four crew members survived, the aircraft was destroyed, its tail section completely severed.
The Investigator’s Head-Scratcher
The preliminary report from the Air Accident Investigation Authority (AIA) has left the aviation world stunned. In a cockpit with four experienced people, how did a thrust lever go to full power without anyone noticing or pulling it back?
The “Why” remains a mystery:
Mechanical Failure? Did a fault in the autothrottle system command the engine to “Takeoff” power by mistake?
Human Error? Did a pilot accidentally bump the lever or trigger a “Go-Around” mode?
The “Startle Effect”: In the 14 seconds it took for the engine to reach full power, the crew was already fighting the swerve. In the chaos, looking at the position of the individual levers might have been the last thing on their minds.
Final Thoughts from Captain Steve
This accident is a sobering reminder that even when everything seems “normal,” a single mechanical anomaly can exceed the human capacity to react. We analyze these reports not to find fault, but to understand the “hidden” failures that lead to tragedy.
