General Aviation Accident Bulletin

Recent general aviation and air carrier accidents.

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AVweb’s General Aviation Accident Bulletin is taken from the pages of our sister publication, Aviation Safety magazine and is published twice a month. All the reports listed here are preliminary and include only initial factual findings about crashes. You can learn more about the final probable cause in the NTSB’s web site at www.ntsb.gov. Final reports appear about a year after the accident, although some take longer. Find out more about Aviation Safety at www.aviationsafetymagazine.com.

September 13, 2017, Nantucket, Mass.

Cessna 402B Businessliner

At about 0723 Eastern time, the airplane was substantially damaged during a rejected takeoff. The commercial pilot sustained minor injuries. Visual conditions prevailed.

The pilot later stated he accelerated the airplane to between 90 and 95 knots and lifted off. The airplane achieved a positive rate of climb and the pilot retracted the landing gear. However, after becoming airborne the pilot was fighting with the controls to keep the airplane’s nose up. The pilot used manual trim and verified the autopilot was not engaged, however, the nose-down tendency continued. He rejected the takeoff and executed an emergency landing on the remaining portion of the runway.

Examination revealed the elevator trim tab was deflected approximately 24 degrees up (airplane nose-down), while the cockpit trim indicator depicted a nose-up trim condition. Further examination revealed the elevator trim tab pushrod was separated from its actuator but remained connected at the elevator trim tab. A drilled bolt was recovered from inside the horizontal stabilizer but the associated washer, castellated nut and cotter pin were not located.

September 14, 2017, Machias, Maine

Beech C23 Sundowner

The airplane was substantially damaged at about 1130 Eastern time during a forced landing following a total loss of engine power. The solo private pilot was not injured. Visual conditions prevailed.

While in the airport traffic pattern and turning to a left base leg for the runway, the engine began to run rough. The pilot verified that the mixture was full rich and the fuel boost pump was on. He also applied carburetor heat, but the engine lost all power about 15 to 20 seconds later. The pilot turned the airplane directly toward the runway but didn’t have enough glide range and landed in a grass area just prior to the runway. During the landing, the landing gears sank into soft ground and the nosewheel touched down hard, which collapsed the nosegear. The airplane spun 180 degrees and came to rest upright in the grass.

Some 20 gallons of fuel per wing were removed from the airplane while the magnetos, fuel boost pump and engine-driven fuel pump tested satisfactorily. The carburetor was intact and clear of debris. The fuel bowl was also absent of debris. The propeller was rotated by hand and continuity was noted in the camshaft, crankshaft and valve train.

September 15, 2017, Glenwood Springs, Colo.

Cirrus Design SR22

At about 2010 Mountain time, the airplane impacted trees and terrain while maneuvering in mountainous terrain. The non-instrument-rated private pilot and three passengers were fatally injured; the airplane was destroyed. Night instrument conditions prevailed.

The pilot was receiving VFR flight following from ATC. Radar data show the airplane on a westerly heading, then turning southwesterly at about 11,000 feet msl. Subsequently, the airplane climbed to about 12,000 feet msl and proceeded northwest for about 12 miles. The airplane then turned back to the southwest in a gradual descent. The last radar position was at 2009:32 and 11,400 feet msl, about mile south of the accident site location.

At 2008, a weather station at 10,600 feet msl and about 16 miles south-southwest of the accident site reported wind from 240 degrees at 11 knots, gusting to 23 knots and varying between 210 and 280 degrees; mile visibility, fog and an overcast ceiling at 200 feet. According to the U.S. Naval Observatory, sunset was at 1917 and the end of civil twilight was at 1944.

September 15, 2017, Watsonville, Calif.

Cessna T210N Turbo Centurion

The airplane was substantially damaged at about 1300 Pacific time while landing. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane’s nose landing gear separated and the aft fuselage was punctured and torn. Visual conditions prevailed.

Examination of the accident site revealed impact marks on the approach end of the runway. Debris was found near the impact marks, and the nose landing gear was found further down the runway. The airplane came to rest on the left side of the runway. The pilot later stated there were no mechanical anomalies with the airplane and that the approach and landing was normal. He further stated he didn’t know how the nose landing gear separation happened.

September 16, 2017, North Branford, Conn.

Mooney M20C

At 1300 Eastern time, the airplane was substantially damaged when it collided with trees and terrain. The airline transport pilot/owner and the passenger were fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed.

Earlier on the day of the accident, the pilot/owner flew to another airport about 60 nm away to pick up the passenger. Both fuel tanks were topped off and line personnel witnessed the pilot sample the fuel before he departed with the passenger at about 1230. Witnesses near the accident site did not see the airplane or hear engine sounds, but they heard what sounded like a “crash” in the trees. The three-blade constant-speed propeller remained attached to the crankshaft flange and was largely intact. There was no evidence of rotational scoring and two of the blades were not damaged. Weather reported nine miles southwest of the accident site included variable wind at three knots, visibility of 10 sm and broken clouds at 1400 feet.

September 16, 2017, Sedona, Ariz.

Cessna 208B Grand Caravan

The airplane collided with a light pole at about 1430 local time while taxiing. The pilot and eight passengers were not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage to its left wing. Visual conditions prevailed for the Part 135 on-demand air taxi flight.

After landing, the pilot was instructed by ground control to follow a truck on the A6 taxiway to transient parking. Transient parking had been moved to the east side of the ramp and was only accessible by taxiway A6 during a fly-in and car show taking place at the time. As the pilot followed the truck, he noticed several airplanes whose wings overhung the taxiway’s right side. Ground personnel were available to clear the airplane on the right but not on the left. The airplane impacted a light pole with its left wing. The light pole was positioned about 65 feet from the taxiway’s centerline.

September 20, 2017, Rhine, Ga.

Cessna 150G

At about 0605 Eastern time, the airplane was substantially damaged when it collided with terrain shortly after takeoff from a private airstrip. The solo student pilot was fatally injured. Night visual conditions prevailed.

Witnesses heard the airplane depart the private grass airstrip at about 0600. They said the pilot made a left 360-degree turn—as he was known to do—before they diverted their attention. Another witness heard the airplane depart, followed shortly thereafter by the sound of a crash. The student pilot was scheduled to take his private pilot checkride the following day in St. Simon’s Island, Ga. On the morning of the accident, he planned to pick up his flight instructor at a nearby airport before flying to St. Simon’s.

September 23, 2017, Ainsworth, Neb.

Mitsubishi MU-2B-40

The airplane was destroyed at about 1028 Central time when it impacted terrain 3.5 miles from its departure airport. The solo private pilot was fatally injured. Instrument conditions prevailed; an IFR flight plan had been filed.

The airport manager watched the airplane depart and enter clouds. Several witnesses in the vicinity reported hearing the airplane take off and a loud noise shortly thereafter. The wreckage was located around 1800 that night. At the time of the accident, the wind was 360 degrees at 10 knots, visibility was 1 sm in mist and overcast skies were at 500 feet. The temperature and dewpoint were both 48 degrees F.

This article originally appeared in the December 2017 issue of Aviation Safety magazine.

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