The AAIB said during the crew’s pre-flight planning, external, the co-pilot initially planned to take off from a point on the runway called Intersection Alpha.
However, he noted they did not have the take-off performance, given the aircraft’s higher-than-normal weight and the environmental conditions at the time, and this was checked and confirmed by the captain.
They therefore agreed to do a calculation using the full-length of Luton Airport’s runway, which permitted take-off.
Three preceding aircraft departed from Intersection Alpha but “an opportunity was missed to highlight [to Air Traffic Control] the requirement to take-off from the lesser used full-length [position]”, the report said.
The plane took off without incident despite its power settings not being adjusted
The AAIB said opportunities to take off from the correct point on the runway were missed “probably by a combination of the crews’ habitual behaviour and confirmation bias”.
It was also noted the captain and co-pilot may have been busy completing other tasks before departure.
The EasyJet spokesperson added: “[Our] pilots are trained to the highest industry standards and the safety and wellbeing of our customers and crew is EasyJet’s highest priority.”
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