Date & Time:
Nov 28, 2004 at 0955 LT
Type of aircraft:
Canadair CL-601 Challenger
Operator:
Registration:
N873G
Flight Phase:
Takeoff (climb)
Flight Type:
Charter/Taxi (Non Scheduled Revenue Flight)
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Montrose – South Bend
MSN:
3009
YOM:
1983
Flight number:
HPJ073
Country:
United States of America
Region:
North America
Crew on board:
3
Crew fatalities:
2
Pax on board:
3
Pax fatalities:
1
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
3
Captain / Total hours on type:
913
Copilot / Total hours on type:
30
Aircraft flight hours:
14317
Aircraft flight cycles:
8910
Circumstances:
On November 28, 2004, about 0958 mountain standard time, a Canadair, Ltd., CL-600-2A12, N873G, registered to Hop-a-Jet, Inc., and operated by Air Castle Corporation dba Global Aviation as Glo-Air flight 73, collided with the ground during takeoff at Montrose Regional Airport (MTJ), Montrose, Colorado. The on-demand charter flight was operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 135 on an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed, and snow was falling. Of the six occupants on board, the captain, the flight attendant, and one passenger were killed, and the first officer and two passengers were seriously injured. The airplane was destroyed by impact forces and post crash fire. The flight was en route to South Bend Regional Airport (SBN), South Bend, Indiana.
Probable cause:
The flight crew's failure to ensure that the airplane’s wings were free of ice or snow contamination that accumulated while the airplane was on the ground, which resulted in an attempted takeoff with upper wing contamination that induced the subsequent stall and collision with the ground. A factor contributing to the accident was the pilots’ lack of experience flying during winter weather conditions.
Final Report:
N873G.pdf574.65 KB
