Tuesday, November 05, 2019

Loss of Control on Ground: ICON A5, N59WE; accident occurred November 02, 2019 at Chester Airport (KSNC), Middlesex County, Connecticut

Additional Participating Entity:
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Enfield, Connecticut

Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf

https://registry.faa.gov/N59WE

Location: Chester, CT
Accident Number: GAA20CA068
Date & Time: 11/02/2019, 1930 EDT
Registration: N59WE
Aircraft: ICON A5
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Defining Event: Loss of control on ground
Injuries: 2 None
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General Aviation - Personal 

The pilot reported that during a night flight, the ceiling was overcast at 5,000ft above ground level, but the visibility was greater than 10 statute miles. During the turn from base to final, the airplane's approach angle was high, and the pilot reported that it was "very dark." He reported that he had "adjusted his approach angle, but prior to reaching the runway, the airplane's right wing collided with treetops.

The airplane rotated to the right, and he added power to align the airplane with the runway. He recalled that it was difficult to perceive the airplane's altitude above the runway because of the airplane's nose high attitude, and the airplane landed hard on the runway. The left main landing gear collapsed, and the airplane exited the left side of the runway. The airplane continued across the grass safety area and "down off a 6-foot retaining wall." The airplane came to rest upright on the parallel taxiway.

The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing, the lower fuselage and the empennage.

The METAR at the accident airport reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was calm, and the ceiling was overcast at 4,900ft above ground level.

The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. 

Pilot Information

Certificate: Private
Age: 66, Male
Airplane Rating(s): Single-engine Land; Single-engine Sea
Seat Occupied: Left
Other Aircraft Rating(s): None
Restraint Used:
Instrument Rating(s): Airplane
Second Pilot Present: No
Instructor Rating(s): None
Toxicology Performed: No
Medical Certification: BasicMed With Waivers/Limitations
Last FAA Medical Exam: 07/30/2019
Occupational Pilot: No
Last Flight Review or Equivalent: 08/24/2018
Flight Time:  (Estimated) 3170 hours (Total, all aircraft), 72 hours (Total, this make and model), 3136 hours (Pilot In Command, all aircraft), 10 hours (Last 90 days, all aircraft), 5 hours (Last 30 days, all aircraft), 3 hours (Last 24 hours, all aircraft)

Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information

Aircraft Make: ICON
Registration: N59WE
Model/Series: A5
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Year of Manufacture: 2018
Amateur Built: Yes
Airworthiness Certificate: Special Flight
Serial Number: 00035
Landing Gear Type: Retractable - Amphibian; Tricycle
Seats: 2
Date/Type of Last Inspection: 08/01/2019, Annual
Certified Max Gross Wt.: 1510 lbs
Time Since Last Inspection:
Engines: 1 Reciprocating
Airframe Total Time: 80.5 Hours at time of accident
Engine Manufacturer: Rotax
ELT: Installed, not activated
Engine Model/Series: 912IS
Registered Owner: Jet Mist Holdings Llc
Rated Power: 100 hp
Operator: Jet Mist Holdings Llc
Operating Certificate(s) Held:None  

Meteorological Information and Flight Plan

Conditions at Accident Site: Visual Conditions
Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation: KSNC, 417 ft msl
Distance from Accident Site: 0 Nautical Miles
Observation Time: 2335 UTC
Direction from Accident Site: 342°
Lowest Cloud Condition:
Visibility:  10 Miles
Lowest Ceiling: Broken / 4900 ft agl
Visibility (RVR):
Wind Speed/Gusts: Calm /
Turbulence Type Forecast/Actual:
Wind Direction:
Turbulence Severity Forecast/Actual:
Altimeter Setting: 30.05 inches Hg
Temperature/Dew Point: 7°C / 2°C
Precipitation and Obscuration: No Obscuration; No Precipitation
Departure Point: GROTON, CT (GON)
Type of Flight Plan Filed: None
Destination: GROTON, CT (GON)
Type of Clearance: None
Departure Time: 1944
Type of Airspace: Class G

Airport Information

Airport: Chester (SNC)
Runway Surface Type: Asphalt
Airport Elevation: 416 ft
Runway Surface Condition: Dry
Runway Used: 17
IFR Approach: None
Runway Length/Width: 2722 ft / 50 ft
VFR Approach/Landing: Traffic Pattern

Wreckage and Impact Information

Crew Injuries: 1 None
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Passenger Injuries: 1 None
Aircraft Fire: None
Ground Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 2 None
Latitude, Longitude: 41.383611, -72.505833 (est)

5 comments:

  1. This is the second icon a5 that Jet Mist owns that crashed.

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  2. Recent flight tracking indicates a work in progress!
    https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N59WE/history/20191024/1830Z/KSNC/KSNC

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  3. Pilot Sonny Whelen, owner of Whelen Engineering located at the Chester Airport

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  4. I wonder if Sonny Whelen also crashed N467BA which was the first Icon A5 owned by Jet Mist.

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  5. Chester Airport has a lot of accidents, everyone one of them that I know of are due to pilot error: read attitude, the atitude at Chester is lawlessness, they follow no FAA rules, kind of a do whatcha want locale, @40% of the pilots follow FAA rules, the rest don't, they fly at @ 100 ft doing touch n goes and when within a few miles they drop to under 200 ft which is howone pilot clocked a 220ft comcast tower a few years back, unfortunately unless the FAA steps in and starts pulling licenses and investigating how pilots are trained there more accidents are coming and eventually they are going to include innocent people on the ground.

    ReplyDelete