Narrative:

Flaps fail caution message while on approach. I; as the first officer (first officer); was pilot flying (PF) at the time of the event; and a go-around was initiated. I continued to fly the aircraft on vectors given from ATC while the captain; pilot not flying (PNF); reviewed and ran the QRH checklist. At the end of the checklist; the controls were swapped; and the captain became the PF. An emergency was then declared (as a precaution due to the proximity of vref to max tire speed; and flight control malfunction). Initially; we returned for a landing on the same runway; but when updated winds presented a tailwind for landing; we opted for a different runway. This required a circling-type maneuver from our present position; and we were essentially cleared for a visual approach from the downwind. The landing was executed very well by the captain. The taxi in was uneventful. Flaps failed at 6 degrees on one side and 8 degrees on the other. The aircraft was written up for the same issue the previous night (which was its previous flight); and had recurrent write-ups for the same issue multiple times in the previous 30 days. Please ensure that aircraft are actually fixed rather than bandaged with an ad/MEL or similar; and then cleared to fly. With paying passengers....people; families; children; etc.... On board; there is no reason why the aircraft should continue to be flown without actually being fixed. Unfortunately; flaps are pretty important to the safety of flight; and a recurring 'write-up' throws up the red flag; regardless of what an ad might be interpreted to state or 'legally' allow. Furthermore; if the airline decides to use the ad as a bandage to squeeze out another revenue flight (rather than actually being fixed); a more comprehensive procedure/profile or guidance should be in place to land the aircraft with a flap failure. I.e. If longer runways are not available to account for the 'float' experienced when the aircraft is in ground effect; guidance on an effective pitch attitude/seat position/etc would be appreciated... To minimize the loss of runway at such a high vref.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: CRJ200 First Officer experiences a flap Fail Caution Message during approach and goes around. An approach and landing at the current flap setting is planned and executed by the Captain. The aircraft had a long history of flaps Fail Caution Messages.

Narrative: Flaps Fail Caution Message while on approach. I; as the First Officer (FO); was pilot flying (PF) at the time of the event; and a go-around was initiated. I continued to fly the aircraft on vectors given from ATC while the Captain; pilot not flying (PNF); reviewed and ran the QRH Checklist. At the end of the checklist; the controls were swapped; and the Captain became the PF. An emergency was then declared (as a precaution due to the proximity of Vref to Max tire speed; and flight control malfunction). Initially; we returned for a landing on the same runway; but when updated winds presented a tailwind for landing; we opted for a different runway. This required a circling-type maneuver from our present position; and we were essentially cleared for a visual approach from the downwind. The landing was executed very well by the Captain. The taxi in was uneventful. Flaps failed at 6 degrees on one side and 8 degrees on the other. The aircraft was written up for the same issue the previous night (which was its previous flight); and had recurrent write-ups for the SAME issue MULTIPLE times in the previous 30 days. Please ensure that aircraft are actually fixed rather than bandaged with an AD/MEL or similar; and then cleared to fly. With paying passengers....people; families; children; etc.... on board; there is no reason why the aircraft should continue to be flown without actually being fixed. Unfortunately; flaps are pretty important to the safety of flight; and a recurring 'Write-Up' throws up the red flag; regardless of what an AD might be interpreted to state or 'legally' allow. Furthermore; if the airline decides to use the AD as a bandage to squeeze out another revenue flight (rather than actually being fixed); a more comprehensive procedure/profile or guidance should be in place to land the aircraft with a flap failure. I.e. If longer runways are not available to account for the 'float' experienced when the aircraft is in ground effect; guidance on an effective pitch attitude/seat position/etc would be appreciated... to minimize the loss of runway at such a high Vref.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.