The crew of an Airbus aircraft with 39 passengers on board had problems with their instrument landing system when they landed at the wrong airport, an air accident report has found.
The Dublin-based Eirjet flight, being operated on behalf of Ryanair, should have touched down at Derry, the British Air Accidents Investigation Branch said.
But the Airbus A320, flying from Liverpool on March 29th last year, landed at Ballykelly airfield, an ex-RAF base now used by the British army, which is about 8km from Derry airport.
Air traffic control had been told by the crew: "We've just touched down."
Control replied: "It was the wrong airport, you've landed at Ballykelly."
The crew replied: "I know we have."
The passengers and bags were unloaded and taken by road to Derry.
The report said the crew of the A320 had had problems with their instrument landing system and asked for permission to make a visual landing at Derry on March 29th last.
The report added that the 59-year-old captain said that once he saw Ballykelly, and not knowing there was another airfield in the vicinity, "his mindset was that this must be his destination airfield".