Crash of an Airbus A300-622R in Birmingham: 2 killed

Date & Time: Aug 14, 2013 at 0447 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
N155UP
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Louisville - Birmingham
MSN:
841
YOM:
2003
Flight number:
UPS1354
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
2
Captain / Total flying hours:
6406
Captain / Total hours on type:
3265.00
Copilot / Total flying hours:
4721
Copilot / Total hours on type:
403
Aircraft flight hours:
11000
Aircraft flight cycles:
6800
Circumstances:
On August 14, 2013, about 0447 central daylight time (CDT), UPS flight 1354, an Airbus A300-600, N155UP, crashed short of runway 18 during a localizer non precision approach to runway 18 at Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM), Birmingham, Alabama. The captain and first officer were fatally injured, and the airplane was destroyed by impact forces and postcrash fire. The scheduled cargo flight was operating under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121 on an instrument flight rules flight plan, and dark night visual flight rules conditions prevailed at the airport; variable instrument meteorological conditions with a variable ceiling were present north of the airport on the approach course at the time of the accident. The flight originated from Louisville International Airport-Standiford Field, Louisville, Kentucky, about 0503 eastern daylight time. A notice to airmen in effect at the time of the accident indicated that runway 06/24, the longest runway available at the airport and the one with a precision approach, would be closed from 0400 to 0500 CDT. Because the flight's scheduled arrival time was 0451, only the shorter runway 18 with a non precision approach was available to the crew. Forecasted weather at BHM indicated that the low ceilings upon arrival required an alternate airport, but the dispatcher did not discuss the low ceilings, the single-approach option to the airport, or the reopening of runway 06/24 about 0500 with the flight crew. Further, during the flight, information about variable ceilings at the airport was not provided to the flight crew.
Probable cause:
The NTSB determined that the probable causes of the crash were:
- The crew continued an unstabilized approach into Birmingham Airport,
- The crew failed to monitor the altitude and inadvertently descended below the minimum descent altitude when the runway was not yet in sight.
Contributing factors were:
- The flight crew's failure to properly configure the on-board flight management computer,
- The first officer's failure to make required call-outs,
- The captain's decision to change the approach strategy without communicating his change to the first officer,
- Flight crew fatigue.
Final Report:

Crash of a Piper PA-31P Pressurized Navajo in Louisville: 1 killed

Date & Time: Sep 27, 1999 at 0605 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
N100EE
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Tupelo - Louisville
MSN:
31-7530003
YOM:
1975
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Captain / Total flying hours:
4100
Circumstances:
The pilot received a weather briefing before departure and when near the destination airport, cleared for the NDB approach. The pilot reported the procedure turn inbound; published MDA is 1,300 feet msl. Witnesses on the airport reported heavy low fog and heard the pilot announce over the UNICOM frequency, 'Oh there is fog rolling into Starkville too?' One of the witnesses advised the pilot they could go to another airport due to the fog; the pilot responded he would execute the approach. The witnesses heard the engines operating at full power then heard the impact and saw a fireball. The airplane impacted the runway inverted, slid across the runway, and came to rest in grass off the runway. A post crash fire destroyed the airplane. Tree contact approximately 972 feet northwest of the runway impact location separated approximately 51 inches of the left wing. Examination of the engines, propellers, and flight controls revealed no evidence of preimpact failure or malfunction. The pilot had twice failed his airline transport pilot checkride. The designated examiner of the second failed flight test indicated the pilot was marginal in all flight operations. The NDB was checked after the accident; no discrepancies were noted.
Probable cause:
The pilot's disregard for the published minimum descent altitude resulting in tree contact and separation of 51 inches of the left wing. Findings in the investigation were the pilot's two failures of the ATP checkride in a multiengine airplane.
Final Report:

Crash of a Piper PA-31T-620 Cheyenne II in Louisville: 3 killed

Date & Time: Sep 15, 1989 at 1336 LT
Type of aircraft:
Registration:
N63XL
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Broomfield - Louisville
MSN:
31-8166037
YOM:
1981
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
2
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
6
Captain / Total flying hours:
27000
Captain / Total hours on type:
3500.00
Aircraft flight hours:
996
Circumstances:
The pilot and two mechanics were on a maintenance test flight. As the aircraft was on a straight-in approach to runway 11 from the west, the pilot was advised of traffic ahead and told to slow his speed as much as possible. The pilot acknowledged. About 15 seconds later, the controller told the pilot (of N63XL) to make a 360° turn to the left for spacing. Shortly hereafter, witnesses observed the aircraft enter a steep bank (turn), then go into a steep spiraling, nose down, descent and crash. No preimpact mechanical malfunction or failure of the aircraft or engines was found. All three occupants were killed.
Probable cause:
Failure of the pilot to maintain adequate airspeed, while maneuvering for spacing in the traffic pattern, which resulted in an inadvertent stall at low altitude.
Final Report: