Narrative:The Twin Otter departed the dirt runway of the Menzel Lejmat North oil field near Hassi Messaoud. This caused severe damage to wing and propeller.
Probable Cause:
CAUSE (translated from French):
By examining the flight manual, the Commission noted that among the instructions to follow, is checking the position of the nose wheel after a take-off as well as before landing.
If the wheel is not centered after takeoff, it can gradually drift up to its full limit deflection.
This verification must be done by centering the control lever until it gets stuck in a centered position and resistance is felt.
On the other hand, there is no relationship between the guidance system of the nose wheel and the rudder pedals.
There is therefore a high probability that the accident is due to the maneuver, voluntarily or not, of the nose wheel in the landing phase in which only the use of the rudder is permitted.
This operation resulted in the deflection and wheel locking, rendering the aircraft uncontrollable.
Classification:
Runway excursion
Sources:
» Scramble 308
» Steven Vervaat
Photos
accident date:
19-11-2004type: de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300
registration: HB-LOK
accident date:
19-11-2004type: de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 300
registration: HB-LOK
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.