ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 314336
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| Date: | Sunday 13 January 2013 |
| Time: | 18:18 LT |
| Type: |  Cessna 560XL Citation Excel |
| Owner/operator: | NetJets |
| Registration: | N662QS |
| MSN: | 560-5262 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 8990 hours |
| Engine model: | Pratt & Whitney Canada PW545A |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | None |
| Category: | Serious incident |
| Location: | Debary, Florida -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | Fort Pierce-Treasure Coast International Airport, FL (FPR/KFPR) |
| Atlanta-DeKalb Peachtree Airport, GA (PDK/KPDK) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The flight departed uneventfully and was climbing to their planned cruise altitude. As the airplane climbed through FL350 at a rate of 1,000 feet per minute (fpm) and with the autopilot engaged, the airplane pitched nose-down and entered a 400-fpm descent. The flight crew then disconnected the autopilot, assumed manual control of the airplane, and leveled at FL350. Both crewmembers noted that "excessive" force was required to change the pitch of the airplane, and subsequently notified air traffic control of the situation. The crew then requested a descent, and noted that both trim and manual elevator control inputs would result in an exaggerated pitch response from the airplane. Upon descending through FL180, the crew felt that something "broke loose" and the elevator controls began to respond normally. The crew subsequently re-engaged the autopilot and continued to the planned destination uneventfully.
Post-incident examination of the airplane revealed that several of the fuselage bilge drain holes were partially or totally obstructed, allowing water to accumulate within the bilge and in areas adjacent to elevator control cables and pulleys. Several of the pulleys exhibited evidence of saturation with moisture, and two of the pulleys' bearings had seized completely and displayed evidence that the control cable had subsequently worn their grooves. Additionally, seals designed to limit the entry of moisture within the tail area were not trimmed according to the published installation procedure. As a result of the findings of the investigation, the airframe manufacturer and operator each implemented a revised inspection and cleaning program to ensure the proper drainage of moisture from the tailcone and fuselage bilge areas.
Probable Cause: An accumulation of debris in the airplane's bilge drain holes that prevented accumulated moisture from properly draining; the accumulated moisture subsequently froze around the elevator control components, which resulted in the flight control stiffness. Contributing to the accident was maintenance personnel's improper installation of seals in the airplane's tailcone, which allowed water to enter the tailcone.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB ERA13IA114
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 28 May 2010 | N662QS | NetJets | 0 | White Plains-Westchester County Airport, NY (HPN/KHPN) | |
min |
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 02-Jun-2023 16:23 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
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