Narrative:
The crew had arrived in Key West Harbor with 13 passengers about 10:10, and had disembarked the passengers. The crew moored the airplane and had gone ashore. The crew returned to the airplane about 11:30, and were planning on a short flight to Key West Airport for the purpose of refueling. The first officer was the pilot flying, and the checklist for start, run-up, and takeoff was partially accomplished. Shortly after liftoff the airplane was observed by witnesses to pitch up abruptly. The captain, and first officer noted the nose pitching up, and the captain stated that they "might have a lot of water in the tail", and the first officer then stated "a lot of water". The crew was then heard to attempt to overcome the nose up pitch until impact.
PROBABLE CAUSE: "Failure of the pilot-in-command to assure the bilges were adequately pumped free of water (adequately preflighted), which resulted in the aft center of gravity limit to be exceeded, and failure of the aircrew to follow the checklist. A factor related to the accident was: the water leak."
| Status: | Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
| Date: | Friday 18 March 1994 |
| Time: | 11:43 |
| Type: |  Grumman G-73T Turbo Mallard |
| Operator: | Chalk's International Airlines |
| Registration: | N150FB |
| MSN: | J-51 |
| First flight: | |
| Engines: | 2 Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 |
| Crew: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Passengers: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Total: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Damaged beyond repair |
| Location: | Key West Harbor, FL ( United States of America)
|
| Phase: | Initial climb (ICL) |
| Nature: | Ferry/positioning |
| Departure airport: | Key West Harbor, FL, United States of America |
| Key West International Airport, FL (EYW/KEYW), United States of America |
The crew had arrived in Key West Harbor with 13 passengers about 10:10, and had disembarked the passengers. The crew moored the airplane and had gone ashore. The crew returned to the airplane about 11:30, and were planning on a short flight to Key West Airport for the purpose of refueling. The first officer was the pilot flying, and the checklist for start, run-up, and takeoff was partially accomplished. Shortly after liftoff the airplane was observed by witnesses to pitch up abruptly. The captain, and first officer noted the nose pitching up, and the captain stated that they "might have a lot of water in the tail", and the first officer then stated "a lot of water". The crew was then heard to attempt to overcome the nose up pitch until impact.
Probable Cause:
PROBABLE CAUSE: "Failure of the pilot-in-command to assure the bilges were adequately pumped free of water (adequately preflighted), which resulted in the aft center of gravity limit to be exceeded, and failure of the aircrew to follow the checklist. A factor related to the accident was: the water leak."
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Classification:
Loss of control
Sources:
» NTSBPhotos
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.
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