Fairchild SA227-AC N730C
12 March 1998 · Tyler, Texas, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 12 March 1998 at about 01:40 local time, a Fairchild SA227-AC registered N730C, operated by Austin Express, was involved in an accident near Tyler, Texas, United States. 3 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 01:40
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Tyler, Texas, United States
- Nearest airport
- Tyler Pounds Field (TYR)
- Coordinates
- 32.3197, -95.3009
- Aircraft
- Fairchild SA227-AC
- Registration
- N730C
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 2
- Operator
- Austin Express
- Operating rule
- Part 121: Air Carrier
- Purpose of flight
- Unknown
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Austin → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Night/Dark
- NTSB number
- FTW98LA149
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Probable cause
The failure of the golf cart's driver to shutdown the engine and set the parking brake before exiting, which resulted in an unmanned runaway cart.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
At night, while taxiing to parking after landing, an unmanned runaway golf cart being used as a lead-in vehicle, collided with the airplane. Witnesses observed the golf cart's driver get out of the cart and the cart continue moving. The driver attempted to stop the cart; however, she was unsuccessful. The cart circled an aircraft 2 or 3 times then veered off and ricocheted off a fence. The pilots reported that they were approximately 50 feet from their intended stopping point, when they observed a golf cart that appeared to be paralleling the fence. At that time they did not perceive it as a hazard. The golf cart then made an 'immediate' change of direction and headed towards their aircraft. After the cart made the change of direction, the pilots observed that the cart was unmanned. They immediately initiated emergency shutdown procedures; however, the cart collided with the left engine's propeller before it could be shutdown.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Fairchild SA227 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 Oct 1999 | Fairchild SA227-AC | Opa Locka, Florida, United States | Merlin Express, Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 5 Jan 1997 | Fairchild SA227-AC | Bullhead City, Arizona, United States | FNG Aviation Inc | Minor injuries | - |
| 22 Aug 1997 | Fairchild SA227-AC | Anchorage, Alaska, United States | Merlin Express | No injuries | - |
| 28 Nov 2000 | Fairchild SA227-AC | Trujillo, Peru | Aero Condor | No injuries | - |
| 11 Jun 1996 | Fairchild SA227-DC | Enid, Oklahoma, United States | Lone Star Airlines | No injuries | - |
| 28 Dec 1995 | Fairchild SA227-AC | Bemidji, Minnesota, United States | Mesaba Airlines, Inc. | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Jan 1998 | Beechcraft V35 | Seguin, Texas, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 14 Jan 1998 | Poling KELEHER LARK KR1B | Georgetown, Texas, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 24 Jan 1998 | Cessna 140A | Justin, Texas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 24 Jul 1998 | Bell 206L-3 | Reklaw, Texas, United States | U.s. Forest Service | Minor injuries | - |
| 29 Aug 1998 | Jodel F11-3 | Beeville, Texas, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 29 Aug 1998 | Piper PA-28-235 | Mineola, Texas, United States | - | No injuries | - |