Narrative:The pilot had not flown his Citation I N505K for over nine months because of extensive maintenance. The airplane was prepared for its first test flight out of maintenance.
Another airplane, Southwest Airlines flight 422, had declared an emergency was on a 10-mile final when the tower cleared the accident airplane for takeoff on runway 22, with no delay on the takeoff roll. Several witnesses reported that the airplane climbed to approximately 150 feet, rolled to the right, descended, and then struck the runway inverted, bursting into flames.
Examination of the wreckage revealed that none of the main-entry door latching pins were in their fully locked position.
Probable Cause:
PROBABLE CAUSE: "The pilot's failure to maintain directional control of the airplane resulting in an inadvertent stall/mush. Contributing factors were the unsecured passenger door and the pilot's diverted attention."
Accident investigation:
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Investigating agency: | NTSB |
Status: | Investigation completed |
Duration: | 1 year and 4 months | Accident number: | DFW06FA019 | Download report: | Summary report
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Classification:
Passenger door failure
Loss of control
Sources:
» Houston Chronicle
» NTSB
Photos
Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does
not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Houston-William P. Hobby Airport, TX to Corpus Christi International Airport, TX as the crow flies is 299 km (187 miles).
This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.