Loss of control Accident Learjet 35A N351AS,
ASN logo
 
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information. If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.

Date:Thursday 21 February 2008
Time:19:50 LT
Type:Silhouette image of generic LJ35 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Learjet 35A
Owner/operator:Chipola Aviation Inc.
Registration: N351AS
MSN: 146
Year of manufacture:1978
Total airframe hrs:11744 hours
Engine model:Honeywell TFE-731
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 5
Aircraft damage: Substantial
Category:Accident
Location:Aniak, Alaska -   United States of America
Phase: Landing
Nature:Ferry/positioning
Departure airport:Anchorage-Ted Stevens International Airport, AK (ANC/PANC)
Destination airport:Aniak Airport, AK (ANI/PANI)
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The flightcrew of a turbojet airplane were landing during dark night VFR conditions at the conclusion of an instrument flight rules (IFR) cross-country aeromedical positioning flight. The captain said he broke out of the cloud base about 1,200 feet msl, 7 miles from the runway. He said he was holding about 15 to 20 degrees of left crab to remain aligned with the runway centerline, and he felt a strong crosswind over the runway threshold. During the landing flare, the left wingtip fuel tank contacted the runway. The captain applied full right aileron and full right rudder, and the airplane touched down on the centerline. After parking, an inspection of the left wingtip fuel tank revealed scraping and flattening of about the aft third of the underside of the fuel tank. The upper surface of the wing, inboard from the tip tank, was wrinkled. The automated weather observing system (AWOS) was reporting, in part: Wind, 270 degrees at 5 knots; visibility, 9 statute miles; clouds and sky condition, 1,200 feet overcast. The FAA Facility Directory/Alaska Supplement notes that "Because of natural obstructions, the AWOS-3 wind may be unrepresentative of runway wind conditions." The captain indicated that the landing approach speed was flown with additional airspeed to compensate for the wind conditions, and he noted that he could only assume that windshear contributed to the accident.

Probable Cause: The captain's inadequate compensation for wind conditions during the landing flare/touchdown. Contributing to the accident were a crosswind and windshear.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: ANC08LA035
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 6 months
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB ANC08LA035

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
03-Oct-2022 08:21 ASN Update Bot Added

Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description

The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:

CONNECT WITH US: FSF on social media FSF Facebook FSF Twitter FSF Youtube FSF LinkedIn FSF Instagram

©2024 Flight Safety Foundation

1920 Ballenger Av, 4th Fl.
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
www.FlightSafety.org