Landing (descent or approach)

The pilot reported that he was under the impression that his airplane’s inboard fuel tanks had been topped and he had 202 gallons on board prior to departure. He had a “standing order” with the airport’s fixed base operator to top the tanks; however, the fueling was not accomplished and he did not visually check the fuel level prior to departure. He entered 202 gallons in cockpit fuel computer and unknowingly commenced the flight with 61 gallons on board. Prior to reaching his destination, his fuel supply was exhausted, both engines lost all power, and he performed a forced landing in a cemetery about one mile from the airport. The pilot and his passenger had minor injuries. Inspectors with the Federal Aviation Administration examined the wreckage and determined that damage to the wings and fuselage was substantial. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

The airplane departed Seoul-Incheon Airport at 1920LT on a schedule service to Mactan, Philippines, carrying 165 passagers and a crew of 11. On approach to Mactan Airport Runway 22 at night, the crew encountered poor weather conditions with thunderstorm activity. Due to the presence of CB's at 1,800 feet, the captain decided to abort the approach and initiated a go around procedure. Fourteen minutes later, at 2226LT, on short final and after crossing the runway threshold, the airplane encountered windshear and apparently touched down hard. The crew aborted the landing procedure for a second time and initiated a second go around manoeuvre. The crew followed a holding pattern for about 30 minutes then was cleared for a third approach. After touchdown on a wet runway 22 (3,310 metres long), the airplane was unable to stop within the remaining distance and overran at a speed of 80 knots. While contacting soft ground, the nose gear was torn off then the airplane collided with various equipment of the localizer antenna and came to rest 360 metres past the runway end. All 176 occupants evacuated safely.

The airplane departed Palenque Airport, Chiapas, on a private flight to Puerto Limón, Costa Rica. While on approach at an altitude of about 2,000 feet at night, the airplane entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed into the sea some 28 km southeast of the destination airport. The accident occurred three minutes prior to ETA. Few debris and two dead bodies were found two days later. On board were the German businessman Rainer Schaller, founder of the fitness chain 'McFit', his wife, two children and a friend.

Shortly after departure to pick up a passenger at their destination airport about 75 nm away, the pilots climbed and turned onto a track of about 115° before leveling off about 11,000 ft mean sea level (msl), where the airplane remained for a majority of the flight. Pilot and controller communications during the flight were routine and there were no irregularities reported. As the airplane descended into the destination airport area, the airplane passed through areas of light to heavy icing where there was a 20 to 80% probability of encountering supercooled large droplets (SLD) during their initial descent and approach. While level at 4,000 ft msl, the flight remained in icing conditions, and then was cleared for the instrument approach to the runway. The flight emerged from the overcast layer as it crossed the final approach fix at 2,800 ft msl; the flight continued its descent and was cleared to land. The controller informed the flight that there was a vehicle on the runway but it would be cleared shortly, which was acknowledged; this was the final communication from the flight crew. Multiple eyewitnesses and security camera footage revealed that the airplane, while flying straight and level, suddenly began a steep, spinning, nearly vertical descent until it impacted a commercial business parking lot; the airplane subsequently collided with several unoccupied vehicles and caught fire. The airplane was certified for flight in known icing conditions and was equipped with pneumatic deice boots on each of the wings and tail surfaces. The pneumatic anti-icing system was consumed by the postimpact fire; the control switches were impact and thermally damaged and a reliable determination of their preimpact operation could not be made. Further examination of the airframe and engines revealed no indications of any preimpact mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal engine operation or performance. During the approach it is likely that the airframe had been exposed to and had built-up ice on the control surfaces. It could not be determined if the pilots used the pneumatic anti-icing system, or if the system was inoperative, based on available evidence. Review of the weather conditions and the airplane’s calculated performance based on ADS-B data, given the speeds at which the airplane was flying, and the lack of any discernable deviations that might have been expected due to an extreme amount of ice accumulating on the airframe, it is also likely that the deice system, if operating at the time of the icing encounter, should have been able to sufficiently remove the ice from the surfaces. Although it is also uncertain when the pilots extended the landing gear and flaps, it is likely that the before-landing checklist would be conducted between the final approach fix and when the flight was on its 3-mile final approach to land. Given this information, the available evidence suggests that the sudden loss of control from a stable and established final approach was likely due to the accumulation of ice on the tailplane. It is likely that once the pilots changed the airplane’s configuration by extending the landing gear and flaps, the sudden aerodynamic shift resulted in the tailplane immediately entering an aerodynamic stall that maneuvered the airplane into an attitude from which there was no possibility to recover given the height above the ground. Postaccident toxicological testing detected the presence of delta-8 THC. Delta-8 THC has a potential to alter perception and cause impairment, but only the non-psychoactive metabolite carboxy-delta-8-THC was present in the pilot’s liver and lung tissue. Thus, it is unlikely that the pilot’s delta-8-THC use contributed to the accident.

The single engine airplane was flying to Pluto Lake to pick up a family from a fishing camp. On board were a pilot and a passenger. Upon landing on Pluto Lake, the airplane went out of control, lost its wings, plunged into the water and came to rest. The passenger was unhurt and the pilot was injured and airlifted to Chibougamau. This aircraft was already severely damaged in a previous accident on 20 June 1985. It was repaired and returned into service more than 18 years later.

On September 20, 2022, about 0709 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 525B, jet airplane, N528DV, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near Pasco, Washington. The pilot and 9 passengers were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 business flight. The pilot reported that the flight to Tri-Cities Airport, (PSC), Pasco, Washington, was uneventful; he reported to the tower controller that the airport was in sight and requested to land on runway 3L. While on left base, the pilot further reported that he started to lower the flaps and extended the gear handle. He did not recall confirming whether the gear was down and locked but reported that there were no landing caution annunciation or aural warnings. Before making contact with the runway, the pilot noticed that the airplane floated longer than expected and upon touchdown realized that the landing gear was not extended. The airplane slid down the runway and came to a stop near the departure end of the runway. The pilot secured the engines and assisted the passengers evacuate the airplane. During the evacuation, the pilot reported that the airplane was on fire near the right engine. Shortly thereafter, the airplane was engulfed in flames.

The airplane departed Bukavu-Kavumu Airport at 1150LT on a cargo flight to Kasese with three crew members on board. As the airplane failed to arrive at destination, SAR operations were initiated and the wreckage was found two days later in a wooded and hilly terrain near Kasese. All three occupants were killed.

On September 9, 2022, about 1502 eastern daylight time, a Cirrus Design Corp SF50, N77VJ, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Saint Cloud, Florida. The private pilot and two passengers were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot stated that as part of his flight preparation he obtained weather information, then before departure provided a passenger safety briefing. The flight departed Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport (OPF), Miami, Florida, destined for Kissimmee Gateway Airport (ISM), Orlando, Florida, maintaining contact along the route of flight with several Federal Aviation Administration air traffic control facilities as appropriate. While en route the pilot obtained the automated terminal information service information at ISM, which indicated light rain and ceilings at 4,600 and 3,800 ft. He was informed by the controller to expect heavy rain and the RNAV (GPS) runway 33 approach, circle to land runway 24. He was then instructed to proceeded direct AXMEB (intermediate fix for the RNAV (GPS) Runway 33 approach) and to cross AXMEB at 2,000 ft msl. He selected NAV and VNAV modes of the autopilot to cross AXMEB at 2,000 ft msl. While descending, he reduced engine power to between 25% and 30% and reviewed the approach. The airplane was equipped with a recoverable data module (RDM) which recorded flight and engine parameters. The data reflected that when the airplane was just north of AXMEB, it turned right and flew toward LOJUF, which was the final approach fix (FAF) for the RNAV (GPS) Runway 33 approach. The airplane continued flying in that general direction at 2,000 ft pressure altitude from 1455 until about 1459, with a reduced power setting (20%) for nearly half that time. The pilot stated that he heard an airspeed aural warning and according to the recorded data the indicated airspeed reduced to about 102 knots. The pilot noted that the reduced airspeed was not common for that portion of the approach or the airplane’s configuration. He added an additional 10% to 15% of engine power which usually recovered airspeed, but when it did not, he added additional engine power. The pilot scanned the attitude indicator which was “OK,” and reported that the airplane then made an uncommanded right turn. He disconnected the autopilot, attempted to roll the wings level; about that time the data reflected that the airplane deviated to the left and climbed with the indicated airspeed decreasing. The pilot pushed the nose down to maintain airspeed, which resulted in his laptop and iPhone “floating.” The airplane was in instrument meteorological conditions, and the pilot informed the passengers that he would be deploying the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS). The airplane was flying at 119 knots in a slight nose-up pitch attitude, about 45° left roll, and at 3,150 ft pressure altitude when the CAPS activation occurred. The airplane touched down hard in a marsh area behind a house in a residential area and sustained substantial damage. All occupants exited the airplane and were taken to a hospital for evaluation. The airplane was retained for examination.

On September 9, 2022, at 1314 Pacific daylight time, a Gates Lear Jet Corp. 36, N26FN, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at North Island Naval Station (Halsey Field) Airport (NZY), San Diego, California. The two pilots sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 business flight. The flight departed from NZY to provide air services to a naval ship. During the return flight to NZY, the crew planned for an instrument approach. Air Traffic Control (ATC) advised that the airport was reporting visual flight rules (VFR) and if the airport was in sight, a visual approach was available. The pilots noted a staggered cloud base and maneuvered to maintain visual contact with the airport. The pilots calculated Vref (reference speed) as 140 KIAS (knots indicated airspeed) for their landing weight (14,900 lbs.) with 20° of flaps; the landing distance was approximately 4,200 ft and included factors for 20° flaps and wet runway conditions. According to the pilots’ statement, runway 36 has a total distance of 8,000 ft. The pilots reported that the spoilers were deployed on touchdown and breaking was applied. The airplane did not decelerate in a normal manner and appeared to be hydroplaning. The antiskid system was activated, and the brakes were briefly released before they were reapplied; there was no difference in deceleration. At the 5,000 ft remaining sign, a callout was made that the airplane was not decelerating and appeared to be accelerating. At the 1,000 ft remaining runway sign, the second in command called out ‘100 kts.’ There was not enough available runway to stop, and the airplane exited the runway and went over the sea wall and came to rest in the bay.

The airplane was completing local skydiving flights out from Piotrków Trybunalski Airport located 45 km southeast from Łodz. After 20 skydivers have been dropped, the crew was returning to the airport when, on final approach, the airplane stalled and crashed in a field. The aircraft was totally destroyed by impact forces and both occupants were killed.