ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 173581
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| Date: | Wednesday 4 February 2015 |
| Time: | 21:09 |
| Type: |  Cessna 441 Conquest II |
| Owner/operator: | Del Air Enterprises II LLC |
| Registration: | N441TG |
| MSN: | 441-0200 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1981 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 3830 hours |
| Engine model: | Honeywell TPE331-10N |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Denton Municipal Airport (KDTO), Denton, TX -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Willmar Municipal Airport, MN (BDH) |
| Denton Municipal Airport, TX (DTO) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The instrument-rated commercial pilot was approaching the destination airport after a cross-country flight in night instrument meteorological conditions. According to radar track data and air traffic control communications, while receiving radar vectors to the final approach course, the pilot did not always immediately comply with assigned headings and, on several occasions, allowed the airplane to descend below assigned altitudes. According to airplane performance calculations based on radar track and GPS data, the pilot made an engine power reduction about 2.5 minutes before the accident as he maneuvered toward the final approach fix. Following the engine power reduction, the airplane's airspeed decreased from 162 to 75 knots calibrated airspeed, and the angle of attack increased from 2.7° to 14°. About 4 miles from the final approach fix, the airplane descended below the specified minimum altitude for that segment of the instrument approach. The tower controller subsequently alerted the pilot of the airplane's low altitude, and the pilot replied that he would climb. At the time of the altitude alert, the airplane was 500 ft below the specified minimum altitude of 2,000 ft mean sea level. According to airplane performance calculations, 5 seconds after the tower controller told the pilot to check his altitude, the pilot made an abrupt elevator-up input that further decreased airspeed, and the airplane entered an aerodynamic stall. A witness saw the airplane abruptly transition from a straight-and-level flight attitude to a nose-down, steep left bank, vertical descent toward the ground, consistent with the stall. Additionally, a review of security camera footage established that the airplane had transitioned from a wings-level descent to a near-vertical spiraling descent. A postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation during the accident flight.
Although the pilot had monocular vision following a childhood injury that resulted in very limited vision in his left eye, he had passed a medical flight test and received a Statement of Demonstrated Ability. The pilot had flown for several decades with monocular vision and, as such, his lack of binocular depth perception likely did not impede his ability to monitor the cockpit instrumentation during the accident flight.
The pilot had recently purchased the airplane, and records indicated that he had obtained make and model specific training about 1 month before the accident and had flown the airplane about 10 hours before the accident flight. The pilot's instrument proficiency and night currency could not be determined from the available records; therefore, it could not be determined whether a lack of recent instrument or night experience contributed to the pilot's difficulty in maintaining control of the airplane.
Probable Cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during the instrument approach in night instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and an aerodynamic stall/spin at a low altitude.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
https://www.grandforksherald.com/news/3672288-plane-crash-kills-pizza-franchisee-first-94-stores-was-minnesota
NTSB
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N441TG/history/20150205/0020Z/KBDH/KDTO
http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=441TG
http://www.banyanair.com/pdf/1981%20Conquest%20II%20441-0200%20Spec.pdf
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 8 March 1997 | N423TG | Blackwell Chevrolet Company | 0 | Madison, MS | |
sub |
Location
Images:
Photos: NTSB
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 05-Feb-2015 05:16 | Geno | Added |
| 05-Feb-2015 05:22 | Geno | Updated [Registration, Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 13-Feb-2015 02:01 | Geno | Updated [Source, Damage, Narrative] |
| 29-Jan-2016 12:09 | Anon. | Updated [Damage] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:28 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 15-May-2017 20:32 | PiperOnslaught | Updated [Nature, Source, Narrative] |
| 19-Aug-2017 14:53 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 17-May-2020 00:08 | RobertMB | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Source, Damage] |
| 27-Mar-2022 23:44 | Captain Adam | Updated [Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Photo] |
| 27-Mar-2022 23:44 | Captain Adam | Updated [Photo] |
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