General Aviation Accident Bulletin

AVweb's General Aviation Accident Bulletin is taken from the pages of our sister publication, Aviation Safety magazine. All the reports listed here are preliminary and include only initial factual findings about crashes. You can learn more about the final probable cause on the NTSB's website 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.

At about 1006 Eastern time, the airplane was destroyed when it collided with terrain. The solo commercial pilot was fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed for the aerial surveying flight.

According to ADS-B data, the airplane climbed to 2300 feet MSL about two minutes into the flight before beginning a descent. The last data point showed the airplane at 1100 feet MSL and about 1150 feet from the accident site, at a groundspeed of 168 knots. Examination of the 382-foot-long debris path revealed a strong fuel odor but no evidence of fire. The landing gear and wing flap positions could not be determined. All six propeller blades were fractured and could not immediately be correlated to an engine; some of them displayed leading-edge gouging, chordwise abrasion, twisting and aft bending. The fuel selector for the left engine was in the OFF position; the right engine's fuel selector was positioned to the left main tank.

The airplane was substantially damaged when its nosegear collapsed at 1230 Eastern time, during the landing rollout. The pilot was not injured. Visual conditions prevailed.

The pilot reported the airplane touched down near the beginning of the turf runway at about 70 knots. He applied normal braking, and the airplane drifted slightly right of centerline. He then applied “less right brake and more left rudder” and the airplane corrected back toward the runway centerline. After the speed dropped to “below 20 knots,” the nosewheel suddenly collapsed. Examination revealed lower engine mount, to which the nose gear trunnion was attached, was substantially damaged. A fractured bolt and fractured trunnion fitting were found on the runway. Weather included a 50-degree crosswind at seven knots, gusting to 14 knots.

At about 1340 Eastern time, the airplane was destroyed when it collided with trees and terrain. The solo pilot was fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed.

At 1338, the pilot completed a touch-and-go landing, and then departed to the east. The airplane climbed to about 500 feet AGL, then descended to 85 feet AGL over a residential area. During the last 30 seconds of the flight, it was at about 100 feet AGL and 145 knots groundspeed before it descended into trees. One witness reported the wing flaps stayed extended longer than expected, and the airplane was lower than expected. Two other witnesses observed the airplane flying low and a doorbell camera recorded the airplane at about 40 to 50 feet AGL, at high speed. Preliminary examination did not reveal any anomalies precluding normal operation.

The airplane was substantially damaged at about 0656 Eastern time when its crew lost control shortly after engine start and it collided with an unoccupied Hawker 1000 bizjet on the ramp. The commercial pilot and a pilot-rated passenger were not injured.

The pilot later stated the parking brake was set and he was applying the toe brakes during the engine-start sequence. As the engine's gas generator speed (NG) increased to 40 percent, he felt the airplane “lurching forward” even though he was still applying the brakes. The airplane continued forward as the engine spooled up. The pilot reached to secure the condition lever, but his thumb slipped off the securing device. The Pilatus rolled into and extensively damaged the Hawker as its own right wing separated during the impact sequence.

At about 0119 Pacific time, the airplane sustained minor damage when its right main landing gear (RMLG) collapsed shortly after touchdown. The 50 passengers and six flight crew members aboard the Sun Country Airlines flight were not injured. The airplane was operated under IFR as a Part 121 scheduled domestic passenger flight.

Retracting the gear after takeoff, the crew observed a warning light for the RMLG. While troubleshooting the problem, the crew heard a loud sound from aft of the cockpit, and declared an emergency. Returning to the departure airport, they observed three green lights for the landing gear. About three seconds after touchdown, the RMLG collapsed. The airplane rolled right, and the right engine impacted the runway. The airplane was stopped on the runway; passengers and crew deplaned using airstairs. Examination revealed the RMLG's outer cylinder was fractured at the upper end between the forward and aft trunnions. A portion of the landing gear punctured the upper wing skin above the landing gear.

This article originally appeared in the May 2022 issue of Aviation Safety magazine.

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