Accident Cessna 551 Citation II/SP OE-FGR,

ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 318766

Date:	Sunday 4 September 2022
Time:	20:44
Type:	Cessna 551 Citation II/SP
Owner/operator:	GG Rent
Registration:	OE-FGR
MSN:	551-0021
Year of manufacture:	1979
Total airframe hrs:	8000 hours
Engine model:	Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-4
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed, written off
Category:	Accident
Location:	37 km NW off Ventspils (Baltic Sea) - Latvia
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Private
Departure airport:	Jerez-La Parra Airport (XRY/LEJR)
Destination airport:	Köln/Bonn-Konrad Adenauer Airport (CGN/EDDK)
Investigating agency:	BFU
Confidence Rating:	Information verified through data from accident investigation authorities

Narrative:
A Cessna 551 Citation II/SP, OE-FGR, was destroyed when it crashed into the Baltic Sea while enroute from Spain to Germany.

At 12:57 UTC (14:57 local time), the airplane took off from runway 20 of Jerez Airport, Spain, operating a private flight to Cologne-Bonn Airport. On board were the pilot and three passengers. After take-off, the airplane turned right into a north-eastern direction and at 13:30 UTC reached the planned cruising altitude FL 360.
At 13:30 UTC, the pilot reported on the frequency of the Spanish Area Control Centre (ACC) Madrid: "Madrid, buenas tardes [callsign] three six zero". The controller answered: "[callsign] muy buenas, identified, fly direct sierra india echo." The pilot answered: "Direct [unintelligible] gracias."
At 13:42 UTC, the pilot radioed the controller: "Madrid radar for [callsign]?" The controller replied: "[callsign] go".
The pilot then stated: "There is a problem with the air condition, request direct descending." The controller replied: "Direct where please?" Six seconds later, the pilot said: "Problems with air condition eh pressurization, we request rapido descending." Clear background noise can be heard during this radio communication of the pilot. The controller answered with: "Confirm [callsign] requesting descent?" He did not receive any answer from the pilot.
At 13:47 UTC, the controller requested the pilot to change the frequency to the neighbouring ATC sector. This radio contact was not answered either. The controller tried several times to reach the airplane either on the active or the emergency frequency.
At 14:06 UTC, ACC Madrid informed the neighbouring sector Bordeaux ACC by telephone about the loss of radio contact with the airplane. The supervisor of Bordeaux ACC alerted the operations centre of the French Air Force.
At 14:16 UTC, the airplane entered French airspace via waypoint ABRIX. At 14:22 UTC, one of the alerted fighter planes reached the Cessna 551 which continued flying north-east at a constant altitude. The fighter's pilot stated that he had observed the airplane first from a distance and then up close. His attempts to establish radio contact on different frequencies of air traffic control and the emergency frequency as well as by visual signs were not met with a reaction. The two pilots of the French fighter planes stated that they could not see any outer damage on the airplane and there were no activities on board. Photos of the airplane taken at this time show an incapacitated pilot in the left-hand seat and his oxygen mask hanging unused in its place.
At the border between Luxembourg and Germany, the airplane turned north and at 15:43 UTC, north-east and continued in German airspace toward the arrival aerodrome Cologne-Bonn Airport. South of Euskirchen, at waypoint ERUKI, the airplane turned and continued north-east. Two fighter airplanes of the German Air Force had taken off at 15:28 UTC and took over escorting the airplane from the French fighters. The German Air Force pilots continued to observe the airplane and tried to establish radio contact with the Cessna 551 pilot. A second pair of fighter airplanes eventually took over from the first.
At 16:50 UTC, the airplane left German airspace about 30 NM north-east of Rügen. Subsequently, fighter airplanes from Denmark, Sweden and NATO, in form of fighters from an air base in Estonia, escorted the airplane.
At 17:30 UTC, the airplane began to descend. At about 17:32 UTC, it entered the airspace controlled by Latvian air traffic control.
At 17:40 UTC, passing FL 200, the airplane turned left, entered a spiral and at 17:45 UTC (20:45 local time), crashed into the Baltic Sea.

The pilot of the aircraft was the owner of Quick Air, an air charter company based in Cologne (Köln).

Accident investigation: