Country
code

Bavaria

Crash of a Learjet 35A in Nuremberg: 3 killed

Date & Time: Feb 8, 2001 at 1540 LT
Type of aircraft:
Registration:
I-MOCO
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Nuremberg - Rome
MSN:
35-445
YOM:
1981
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
1
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
3
Captain / Total flying hours:
2641
Captain / Total hours on type:
54.00
Copilot / Total flying hours:
575
Copilot / Total hours on type:
192
Circumstances:
During an inspection of the right engine a technician found chips in the oil filter. The damage should have been repaired within the next 20 flight hours. Since the maintenance organization in Switzerland, who usually carry out necessary repairs, did not have the spare parts available on time, the task was assigned to an organization in Nuernberg. On 07.02.2001, the airplane was ferried to Nuernberg and repaired in the presence of the chief technician of the operator. The repairs and the replacement of the parts exclusively on the right engine were certified properly. The return flight to Rome was planned for the 8th of February 2001 at about 1530 o’clock. A charter flight from Rome was to be carried out on the following day. Two pilots and the chief technician of the operator were aboard the aircraft. The flight preparation was carried out by phone from the repair facility. A weather briefing and the NOTAM´s for the flight were obtained properly. The check lists for the take-off were read. During the preparation the unbalanced fuel distribution between the right and left-hand tanks, and the fact that the total amount yet was equal on both sides was discussed. Immediately afterwards the second pilot noticed the failure of his gyro instruments. The airplane was taxied via the taxiways "Juliet" and "Foxtrot" to runway 10. Pilot at the controls was the pilot in command while the second pilot carried out the radio communications with the air traffic control. The pilots received the clearance for a departure via the departure route Noerdlingen (NDG 1 M) to Rome. The take-off was at 1531 o'clock. After 5 nautical miles the airplane turned to the south, following the departure route. At 15:33:49 o'clock the left-hand engine failed without a previous warning. The noise of a down running engine was also heard by several witnesses on the ground. Smoke or a fire was not seen by them. The second pilot reported an emergency with the left-hand engine shortly after the occurrence to the control tower and informed them that they wanted to return for a landing on the runway 10. At that time there were visual meteorological conditions, and the runway was continuously to be seen. Since the departure control Nuernber APP wished to coordinate the flight, the frequency was changed for a short time upon request. After the second pilot had declared the emergency once again they switched back to the tower again and continued the approach to runway 10. Up to the final approach the flight was without particular occurrences. The flaps were first set to 8° and later on to 20°, afterwards the landing gear was extended. At this time the airplane was somewhat north of the extended centerline slightly above the glide path for an instrument approach. Approximately one kilometer in front of the runway, when flying over the main road no. 4 near the small town of Buch, the airplane was observed by different witnesses as it made unusual flight maneuvers. The airplane deviated then from the landing direction to the north, and made some reeling movements. Afterwards it seemed for a short
period that the pilot intended to turn right to reach the runway. Immediately afterwards and near the ground the airplane abruptly stalled to the left approximately maintaining its height, then assuming a bank angle of more than 90°, and crashed nearly upside down at 1540 o’clock into a forest north of the runway. The airport fire service, who were in a standby position due to the announced safety landing of the Learjet reached the accident site approximately 4 minutes later and started to extinguish the fire. All three occupants had lost their lives during the impact. The airplane was destroyed.
Probable cause:
The accident was caused by an in-flight failure of the left power plant approximately 3 minutes after take-off and an inadequate conduct of the subsequent single-engine landing procedure so that in short final the airplane stalled and crashed from low height. The failure of the left engine was caused by intergranular fractures of retention posts on the high pressure turbine disk. As a result of incorrect service life recordings the maximum number of cycles had considerably been exceeded.
Final Report:

Crash of a Piper PA-60 Aerostar (Ted Smith 602P) in Coburg

Date & Time: Oct 30, 2000 at 1456 LT
Operator:
Registration:
D-IUAK
Flight Type:
Survivors:
Yes
MSN:
62-0920-8165044
YOM:
1981
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
After landing on runway 12/30 which is 632 metres long, the twin engine aircraft was unable to stop within the remaining distance. It overran, lost its left wing and came to rest, bursting into flames. The pilot, sole on board, was slightly injured.

Crash of a Beriev BE-103 in Straubing: 1 killed

Date & Time: Apr 29, 1999 at 1833 LT
Type of aircraft:
Registration:
RA-03002
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Straubing - Straubing
MSN:
30 02
YOM:
1996
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
A testflight for the purpose of vibration measurements on the propellers was to be carried out with the a.m. aircraft. The Beriev BE103 is the prototype of a 6 seater, twin engine amphibious aircraft of russian design. It was powered by two piston engines Teledyne Continental IO-360 E5 which operated hydraulic variable pitch propellers. In the course of the russian type certification the vibration behavior and the stiffness of the propeller blades had to be proven. Therefore a test propeller, fitted with wire strain gauges was attached to the L/H engine at the propeller manufacturer’s facilities in Straubing. The transducers and transmitters were fitted instead of the spinner by means of special brackets. The data recording system was installed in the aircraft’s cabin. As during the testflights a maximum of 105% of the maximum allowable rpm had to be achieved the L/H propeller governor was adjusted to 2940 rpm. Furthermore the R/H propeller and governor were changed from prototypes to the serial components. After these modifications several engine test runs were carried out for calibration of the test equipment and data recording. The testflight was recorded on a camcorder. The film showed that the pilot in command taxied to the far end of the 940 m long pavement runway, adjusted the engines while standing and thereafter commenced his take-off run which should have been approx. 300 m long with view to the aircraft weight according to information gained from the a/c manufacturer. The a/c, however, taxied far beyond the ½ marking of the runway, rotated fairly long and went airborne after approx. 700 m with a high angle of attack. After gaining 10 to 15 m of altitude the pilot in command retracted the landing gear. Right after that the a/c entered a shallow descend in a nose-up attitude and turned to the left before it left the camera view some seconds before the impact. During the entire flight a constant and normal engine noise was audible. Approx. 600 m behind the runway end the aircraft hit the bank of a street and caught fire. The pilot in command was fatally injured, the aircraft was destroyed by the impact and the post impact fire.
Probable cause:
The accident was caused by the pilot in command trying to depart at an extremely reduced power setting and not aborting the take-off in time. Technical causes were not determined. The wrong power setting was related to a misinterpretation of the function and procedures in connection with the constant speed propeller system. Although these are part of the basic knowledge of a pilot on aircraft of this category they were explained to him by employees of the propeller manufacturer and the aircraft manufacturer’s test flight engineer as part of the preflight briefing. With a high probability the pilot did not understand these explanations in all details. The service of an interpreter was refused by him. The planned testflights wouldn’t have led to a power reduction when accomplished properly.
Final Report:

Crash of a Beechcraft RC-12K Huron near Giebelstadt AFB: 2 killed

Date & Time: Nov 6, 1998
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
85-0151
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
MSN:
FE-5
YOM:
1987
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
2
Circumstances:
The twin engine aircraft was approaching Giebelstadt AFB when it crashed in the Sommerhausen zoo located about 8 km northeast of the airfield. Both pilots were killed.

Crash of a Cessna 550 Citation II in Freilassing: 10 killed

Date & Time: Feb 19, 1996 at 0954 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
D-CASH
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Berlin - Salzburg
MSN:
550-0564
YOM:
1987
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
8
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
10
Aircraft flight hours:
5242
Circumstances:
Following an uneventful charter flight from Berlin, the crew was cleared to descend from FL140 and started the approach to Salzburg-Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Airport. After being established on the ILS, the crew was cleared to land when, on short final, the aircraft stalled and crashed in a wooded area located in Freilassing, about 5,5 km short of runway 16, bursting into flames. The aircraft was destroyed by impact forces and a post crash fire and all 10 occupants were killed. At the time of the accident, severe icing conditions were reported in the area.
Probable cause:
The exact cause of the accident could not be determined with certainty. It was reported that the aircraft' speed dropped on short final, causing the aircraft to stall. It was not established if the stall was the consequence of icing or not as the aircraft was totally destroyed by a post crash fire and no trace of any icing was found on the wreckage. It was also reported that the electrical system failed on approach, causing the autopilot system to be disconnected and the attitude indicator to be out of service.

Crash of a Partenavia P.68C-TC Victor in Kampenwand

Date & Time: Mar 13, 1995 at 0645 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
D-GITY
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
Yes
Site:
Schedule:
Munich - Hanover
MSN:
362-42-TC
YOM:
1985
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
4
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
While cruising by night, the pilot failed to realize his altitude was insufficient when the twin engine aircraft struck trees and crashed in a snow covered wooded area located in the Bavarian Alps, near Kampenwand. All five occupants were injured.

Crash of an Antonov AN-2T in Aichach

Date & Time: Jun 26, 1994 at 1713 LT
Type of aircraft:
Registration:
D-FONJ
Flight Type:
Survivors:
Yes
Schedule:
Aichach - Aichach
MSN:
193 473 17
YOM:
1958
Location:
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
0
Circumstances:
The pilot, sole on board, was taking part to an airshow at Aichach Airport. On final approach, the aircraft was too low when it struck an embankment located short of runway threshold. On impact, both main landing gears were torn off and the aircraft landed on its belly and came to rest. The pilot escaped uninjured and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Crash of a Beechcraft C90 King Air in Mindelheim: 1 killed

Date & Time: May 27, 1994 at 0700 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
D-IHNA
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Mindelheim - Berlin
MSN:
LJ-926
YOM:
1981
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
Shortly after takeoff from Mindelheim-Mattsies Airport, while in initial climb, the pilot informed ATC about problems and elected to return. While completing a sharp turn to the right at a relative low altitude, the aircraft stalled and crashed in a field located less than 2 km from the airfield. The aircraft was destroyed and the pilot, sole on board, was killed. The aircraft was operated by Burkhart Grob Luft-und-Raumfahrt later renamed Grob Aerospace.
Probable cause:
It was determined that the fuel filler cap on the right fuel tank was missing and fuel was leaking, necessitating an emergency return. While completing a last turn to the right, the aircraft stalled because its speed was insufficient and the distance from the ground was too low to expect recovery.

Crash of a Mitsubishi MU-2B-60 Marquise near Beucherling: 1 killed

Date & Time: Jan 22, 1993
Type of aircraft:
Registration:
N407MA
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Cologne - Vienna
MSN:
1503
YOM:
1981
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
While in cruising altitude in a flight from Cologne-Bonn to Vienna, the pilot lost control of the airplane that entered a dive. He was able to send a brief maybay message but give no indication about the situation he was facing. The aircraft crashed in a field located near Beucherling and was destroyed. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.

Crash of a Cessna 421C Golden Eagle III in Munich: 5 killed

Date & Time: Jan 25, 1992
Operator:
Registration:
D-IBHH
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Zurich - Augsburg
MSN:
421C-0162
YOM:
1976
Country:
Region:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
4
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
5
Circumstances:
On approach to Augsburg-Mühlhausen Airport, the pilot encountered foggy conditions with a visibility down to 500 meters. Unable to establish a visual contact with the runway, he initiated a go-around procedure and diverted to Munich-Riem Airport. On approach to Munich, weather conditions were poor. On short final, he realize the aircraft was not properly aligned and decided to attempt a go-around maneuver when the aircraft struck the ground and crashed to the left of the runway. The aircraft was destroyed upon impact and all five occupants were killed. At the time of the accident, visibility and RVR were below minimums.