Cessna 182T N963CP

Summary

On 17 December 2013 at about 02:15 local time, a Cessna 182T registered N963CP, operated by Civil Air Patrol, was involved in an accident near Burlington, North Carolina, United States. 2 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.

Date

17 December 2013 at 02:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Burlington, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Burlington-Alamance Regional (BUY)

Coordinates

36.0489, -79.4742

Aircraft

Cessna 182T

Registration

N963CP

Category

Airplane

Year built

2007

Engines

1

Operator

Civil Air Patrol

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Burlington → Burlington

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

ERA14LA072

Nobody was injured.

A loss of airplane control during takeoff for reasons that could not be determined due to the postaccident condition of the elevator control system.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he was practicing night takeoffs and landings. He completed two takeoffs and landings without incident; however, during the third takeoff, as the airplane was climbing to between about 10 and 20 ft above ground level, it stopped climbing, and the pilot felt increased resistance on the elevator control. The airplane did not respond to elevator control inputs, and it subsequently pitched nose down and descended. The airplane touched down before departing the left side of the runway. The nose gear collapsed, and the airplane sustained substantial damage to the firewall and nose section. The pilot reported that the airplane had a recent history of elevator trim issues, which included difficulty controlling the elevator. The elevator trim jackscrew had been removed, inspected, and reinstalled about 1 week before the accident, and the airplane had since been operated about 7 hours. Examination of the airplane, including the elevator control system, did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation; however, impact damage precluded the ability to conduct a complete functional check of the elevator control system.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.