Aviation Crash Map

Beechcraft 400 N428JD

18 September 2012 · Macon, Georgia, United States · Minor injuries

Summary

On 18 September 2012 at about 14:03 local time, a Beechcraft 400 registered N428JD, operated by Dewberry Air LLC, was involved in an accident near Macon, Georgia, United States. 3 people were on board and 2 had minor injuries. 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 14:03
Classification
Accident
Location
Macon, Georgia, United States
Nearest airport
Macon Downtown Airport (MAC)
Coordinates
32.8247, -83.5719
Aircraft
Beechcraft 400
Registration
N428JD
Category
Airplane
Engines
2
Operator
Dewberry Air LLC
Operating rule
Part 91: General Aviation
Purpose of flight
Executive/Corporate
Phase of flight
Not recorded
Route
Charleston → Macon
Aircraft damage
Substantial
Weather
VMC
Light
Day
NTSB number
ERA12FA567

People

2 people had minor injuries.

On board Died Serious Minor Uninjured
3 0 0 2 1

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain proper airspeed, which resulted in the airplane touching down too fast on the wet runway with inadequate runway remaining to stop and a subsequent runway overrun. Contributing to the landing overrun were the flight crewmembers’ failure to correctly use the appropriate performance chart to calculate the runway required to stop on a contaminated runway and their general lack of proper crew resource management.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was seated in the left seat and was the flying pilot. The pilots reported that prior to departure, there were no known mechanical malfunctions or abnormalities with the airplane, including the brakes, flaps, anti-skid, or thrust reversers. The copilot, who was the pilot monitoring, calculated a Vref speed of 108 knots for the landing weight. Postaccident analysis determined that a more precise Vref based on weight would have been 110 knots. Both pilots reported that they set their airspeed index bugs to 108 knots about 11 miles from the airport. The pilot reported that the airplane touched down about 1,000 feet from the approach end of the runway. Both crewmembers reported that, although they used maximum thrust reversers, brakes, and ground spoilers, they could feel a "pulsation" in the brake system and that the airplane hydroplaned. The airplane overran the wet runway with standing water and came to rest 283 feet beyond the paved portion of the runway in a treed area off the airport. Postaccident examination of the airspeed index bugs revealed that the pilot's was set to 115 knots and that the copilot's was set to 105 knots, which correlated with their calculated and reported V1 and V2 departure speeds. It is likely that they did not move the airspeed bugs during the approach to landing. Postaccident testing of the brake system components did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions or abnormalities that would have precluded normal operation. Based on radar data, the airplane was likely 15 to 19 knots above the reference speed of 110 knots when it crossed the runway threshold. The data further revealed that the approach was flown with about a 4-degree glideslope approach angle instead of the recommended 3-degree glideslope angle. The pilots reported that the precision approach path indicator lights, which would have provided an approximate 3-degree approach, became inoperable shortly after activation. Although the touchdown location could not be accurately determined, given the approximate glideslope and the excessive speed, the airplane likely floated before touching down. It is also likely that the pilots, familiar with landing at their home airport, which is configured with a grooved runway that mitigates wet runway conditions more effectively, relied on their past wet runway experience and failed to calculate their landing distance using the appropriate performance chart for the contaminated runway. Based on the airplane's performance charts, on a contaminated runway, an airplane with a Vref of 110 knots would need a 4,800-foot runway; at Vref + 10 knots, the airplane would need 6,100 feet to land. The runway was 4,694 feet long. Hence, the lack of a clear understanding of the actual wet runway landing distance necessary to stop and the excessive approach speed resulted in the airplane crossing the approach end of the runway at a speed and flight profile unsuitable for the wet runway condition and without sufficient distance available to stop. Further, the pilots exhibited poor crew resource management by not using the appropriate chart for the contaminated runway, not recognizing the runway was too short based on the conditions, failing to reset their airspeed bugs before the approach, and not recognizing and addressing the excess approach speed.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.

Other Beechcraft 400 accidents

Date Aircraft Location Operator Outcome Died
18 Jun 2012 Beechcraft 400A
N826JH
Atlanta, Georgia, United States N79TE LLC Serious injuries -
13 Apr 2011 Beechcraft 400
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13 Mar 2014 Beechcraft 400A
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13 May 2014 Beechcraft 400A
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14 Mar 2016 Beechcraft 400A
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5 Feb 2018 Beechcraft 400A
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All 24 records for this type

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All 170,864 records in United States