The pilot of this B737-200 landed at Hoedspruit (ex airforce base) in the dark and he proceeded to take the wrong taxiway.
Having arrived at a dead end he then attempted to turn around by reversing (using reverse thrust).
He misjudged and put the main gear off the concrete. It then rolled back down the bank. He then tried to climb out using full power.
Of course with the engines that close to the ground, they ingested grass, stones, mud, sticks, dust, sand, etc. If it wasn’t raining – the jet blast could set fire to the surrounding bush.
BUT… we cannot help but wonder how much it cost to fix the damage….
