The National Transportation Safety Board did not travel to the scene of this accident.
Additional Participating Entity:
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Sacramento, California
Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf
Investigation Docket - National Transportation Safety Board: https://dms.ntsb.gov/pubdms
http://registry.faa.gov/N508JA
Location: Sacramento, CA
Accident Number: WPR15LA184
Date & Time: 06/11/2015, 1700 PDT
Registration: N508JA
Aircraft: ECLIPSE AVIATION CORP EA500
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Defining Event: Landing gear collapse
Injuries: 4 None
Flight Conducted Under: Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter - Non-scheduled
On June 11, 2015, at 1700 Pacific daylight time, an Eclipse Aviation Corp EA500 jet, N508JA, experienced a collapsed landing gear while taxiing to the active runway for departure at Sacramento Executive Airport (SAC), Sacramento, California. The airline transport pilot, a commercial pilot, and two passengers were not injured. The airplane was operated by Memly Aviation as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 business flight. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight that was preparing to depart at the time of the accident, and an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan had been filed. The airplane was destined for San Francisco International Airport (SFO), San Francisco, California.
According to both pilots, the airplane was taxiing to the active runway when they heard a loud bang, and the airplane veered to the left. They contacted the tower asking if they had blown a tire. Tower personnel responded, and reported to the pilots that the airplane was leaking copious amounts of fuel onto the tarmac. The pilots shut down the airplane and evacuated the passengers. Upon further inspection of the airplane, the pilots reported that the left main landing gear trunnion had gone through the left wing.
According to the operator, the left main landing gear trunnion broke near the rear attachment point, which caused the landing gear to penetrate through the entire wing from bottom to top. The portion of the landing gear trunnion that failed, was housed behind a lower wing panel and would not have been visible to the flight crew.
The left main landing gear trunnion, part number M041-07H0101 serial number 0114, was original equipment and had accrued 1,275 hours and 1,492 cycles.
The left main landing gear assembly was shipped to the materials laboratory of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Visual examination revealed that the landing gear fractured at the trunnion portion of the landing gear. The smaller separated piece showed a fatigue crack that emanated from the inner wall. The crack itself was from a machining mark. The area outside of the fracture face contained rough features consistent with an overstress separation. The deep machining mark was in a portion of the trunnion where the inner wall tapered inward, and was in a transition region where the wall thickness was increasing in thickness. The assembly contained a metal squeeze-out typical of forging/casting parts. The excess metal squeezed-out of the forged/casting products are moved by machining, which renders them a high stress area.
According to the manufacturer, the initiation of the fatigue crack from a step machined inner wall of the trunnion was outside of the design requirements. Eclipse Aerospace, and the landing gear manufacturer, Mecaer Aviation Group, inspected for the presence of the machined steps. The manufacturer indicated that they had a systemic manufacturing defect that potentially effected the entire fleet of EA500 aircraft. Eclipse Aerospace and Mecaer, issued a mandatory Service Bulletin to address the issue. A fleet wide inspection/landing gear trunnion repair/replacement program identified as of May 9, 2016, that 126 airplanes had been inspected, with trunnion repaired or replaced when warranted. All owners of the EA500 airplane have been notified of the issue. The airplane and landing gear manufacturers further addressed inventory landing gear; the trunnions were reworked/repaired/replaced as warranted prior to shipment to Eclipse Aerospace. Mecaer also communicated with the machine shop responsible for the defect and process changes were put in place to prevent the issue for the existing inventory of landing gear.
Pilot Information
Certificate: Airline Transport
Age: 54, Male
Airplane Rating(s): Multi-engine Land; Single-engine Land
Seat Occupied: Left
Other Aircraft Rating(s): None
Restraint Used: 5-point
Instrument Rating(s): Airplane
Second Pilot Present: Yes
Instructor Rating(s): None
Toxicology Performed: No
Medical Certification: Class 1 With Waivers/Limitations
Last FAA Medical Exam: 01/15/2015
Occupational Pilot: Yes
Last Flight Review or Equivalent: 05/03/2015
Flight Time:
Co-Pilot Information
Certificate: Commercial
Age: 25, Male
Airplane Rating(s): Multi-engine Land; Single-engine Land
Seat Occupied: Right
Other Aircraft Rating(s): None
Restraint Used: 5-point
Instrument Rating(s): Airplane
Second Pilot Present: Yes
Instructor Rating(s): None
Toxicology Performed: No
Medical Certification: Class 1 With Waivers/Limitations
Last FAA Medical Exam: 12/02/2014
Occupational Pilot: Yes
Last Flight Review or Equivalent: 12/17/2014
Flight Time: (Estimated) 410 hours (Total, all aircraft), 118 hours (Total, this make and model)
Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information
Aircraft Manufacturer: ECLIPSE AVIATION CORP
Registration: N508JA
Model/Series: EA500 NO SERIES
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Year of Manufacture: 2006
Amateur Built: No
Airworthiness Certificate: Normal
Serial Number: 000001
Landing Gear Type: Retractable - Tricycle
Seats:
Date/Type of Last Inspection: 04/09/2015, Annual
Certified Max Gross Wt.:
Time Since Last Inspection:
Engines: 2 Turbo Jet
Airframe Total Time: 1275 Hours at time of accident
Engine Manufacturer: P&W CANADA
ELT: C126 installed, not activated
Engine Model/Series: PW610F-A
Registered Owner: JET-ALLIANCE/DAVID CROWE LLC
Rated Power: 950 lbs
Operator: Memly Aviation
Operating Certificate(s) Held: On-demand Air Taxi (135)
Operator Does Business As: Memly Aviation
Operator Designator Code: YM47
Meteorological Information and Flight Plan
Conditions at Accident Site: Visual Conditions
Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation: SAC, 23 ft msl
Observation Time: 1653 PDT
Distance from Accident Site: 0 Nautical Miles
Direction from Accident Site: 0°
Lowest Cloud Condition: Clear
Temperature/Dew Point: 36°C / 16°C
Lowest Ceiling: None
Visibility: 10 Miles
Wind Speed/Gusts, Direction: 5 knots, 250°
Visibility (RVR):
Altimeter Setting: 29.73 inches Hg
Visibility (RVV):
Precipitation and Obscuration: No Obscuration; No Precipitation
Departure Point: Sacramento, CA (SAC)
Type of Flight Plan Filed: IFR
Destination: SAN FRANCISCO, CA (SFO)
Type of Clearance: IFR
Departure Time: 1700 PDT
Type of Airspace:
Airport Information
Airport: SACRAMENTO EXECUTIVE (SAC)
Runway Surface Type:
Airport Elevation: 23 ft
Runway Surface Condition: Dry
Runway Used: N/A
IFR Approach: None
Runway Length/Width:
VFR Approach/Landing: None
Wreckage and Impact Information
Crew Injuries: 2 None
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Passenger Injuries: 2 None
Aircraft Fire: None
Ground Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 4 None
Latitude, Longitude: 35.512500, -121.493333 (est)
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