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| Date: | Friday 24 January 2003 |
| Time: | 17:00 |
| Type: | Maverick Twinjet 1500 |
| Owner/operator: | Maverick Air |
| Registration: | N750TJ |
| MSN: | 1 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1999 |
| Engine model: | General Electric T58 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Melbourne Orlando International Airport (MLB/KMLB), Melbourne, FL -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Test |
| Departure airport: | Melbourne International Airport, FL (MLB/KMLB) |
| Melbourne International Airport, FL (MLB/KMLB) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On January 24, 2003, about 1700 eastern standard time, an experimental amateur-built Bornhofen Twinjet 1500, N750TJ, operated by Maverick Air Inc. as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 test flight impacted with trees at the Melbourne Airport, Melbourne, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. No flight plan was filed. The airplane was destroyed. The airline transport-rated pilot received fatal injures. The flight had originated from the same airport, at 1650.
The pilot reported a problem with the landing gear after takeoff, and had asked the tower to check the position of the landing gear. On the first pass the gear was partially extended, on the second pass the gear appeared to be fully retracted. The pilot informed the tower that he would make an intentional gear-up landing between the taxiway and the runway to the grass. The airplane was observed at an altitude below the height of the control tower. All the witnesses interviewed agreed that the aircraft was never higher than 200 to 300 feet, more like tree top level, and was pitching and banking very steeply in turns. On the final circuit the pilot reported that he was having trim problems, and that he would now land on runway 9L. As the aircraft approached the base leg to final turn the tower operator momentarily diverted his attention away from the aircraft. When he looked up the aircraft was gone and smoke was rising from the crash site. Examination of the wreckage after the crash revealed no discrepancies. A witness revealed that the pilot was reported to have been sick with flu like ailments for at least a week prior to the accident. The day prior to the accident the pilot was scheduled to fly the aircraft for testing, and appeared so ill that he was instructed to go home. Toxicological tests on the pilot-in-command, revealed that Salicylate [and] Pseudoephedrine were detected in Urine, "61.54 (ug/ml, ug/g).
Probable Cause: The pilot-in-command failed to obtain sufficient altitude to clear obstacles at the approach end of the airport which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=56391
Air International MAR 2003
https://minijets.org/fr/300-500/general-electric-t-58/maverick-twinjet-1500
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 01-Jan-2021 17:35 | TB | Added |
| 28-Nov-2024 19:15 | Captain Adam | Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, ] |
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