Beechcraft E90 N60BA

Summary

On 11 December 2013 at about 16:08 local time, a Beechcraft E90 registered N60BA, operated by Bemidji Aviation Services, Inc., was involved in an incident near Eau Claire, Wisconsin, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

11 December 2013 at 16:08

Classification

Incident

Location

Eau Claire, Wisconsin, United States

Coordinates

44.0000, -91.0000

Aircraft

Beechcraft E90

Registration

N60BA

Category

Airplane

Year built

1993

Engines

2

Operator

Bemidji Aviation Services, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Park Rapids → Wheeling

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN14IA085

Nobody was injured.

The failure of the copilot’s windshield inner layer due to a peel chip that developed as a result of mechanical and thermal expansion stresses.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The operator reported that, while in cruise flight at flight level 190, the copilot's inner layer windshield cracked. Windshield heat was not being used at the time, and pressurization was not compromised. The pilot conducted a precautionary landing without incident. Examinations of the windshield revealed that the inner glass ply had fractured due to a peel adhesion chip at the windshield's lower forward corner. The peel chip developed as a result of the differences in coefficient of expansion between the inboard glass ply and vinyl interlayer and had propagated due to mechanical and thermal expansion stresses until the center tension of the thermally tempered glass was penetrated, which caused a spontaneous fracture. The windshield was redesigned in 2001 to reduce the thermal expansion stresses.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.