On August 6, 1989, a Cessna 421C (registration N211PB) operated by Daniel C.hostetter was involved in an aviation accident near Waterville, ME. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: IMPROPER PLANNING/DECISION BY THE PILOT, HIS FAILURE TO OBTAIN NOTAMS, AND FAILURE OF THE APPROACH CONTROLLER TO PROVIDE A SAFETY ADVISORY ABOUT THE RUNWAY CONDITION. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
A pilot landed on Runway 5 at an uncontrolled airport believing it was 5500 feet long, but the northeast 2700 feet was closed. He failed to stop before barricades, exited left into mud, grass, and construction materials, damaging the aircraft.
Incident Details
During arrival at Waterville, the flight was handed off to Brunswick approach control and was cleared for a VOR/DME approach to the uncontrolled airport. The pilot subsequently landed on Runway 5, which he believed to be 5,500 feet long. However, the northeast 2,700 feet of the runway was closed. The pilot reported that he failed to come to a complete stop before reaching barricades, so he exited the runway to the left. The aircraft then encountered mud, grass, and construction materials and was damaged.
Pilot Briefing
The pilot had received a weather briefing before the flight. However, he interrupted the briefing before it was finished and did not obtain information about NOTAMs.
Controller Communication
The approach controller did not advise the pilot about the runway condition.