What happened
While enroute from Pueblo, Colorado, to Columbia, South Carolina, the captain's windshield delaminated. This prompted the flight crew to divert the aircraft to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for necessary repairs.
The flight crew reported that the first officer was operating the aircraft at the time. Because the aircraft was light, the captain had instructed the first officer to execute a firm landing to ensure sufficient weight was placed on the wheels upon touchdown.
Following the firm landing, the first officer activated the engine thrust reversers. As the nose landing gear made contact with the runway, the airplane began veering to the left. The crew was unable to correct the directional deviation, and the aircraft exited the left side of the runway. During the excursion, the aircraft ran over a taxiway and struck a taxiway sign and its concrete base. The impact caused the nose landing gear to collapse, after which the aircraft came to rest.
Examination of the runway revealed alternating dark and light marks from the left main landing gear tire, appearing approximately 160 feet before the marks from the right main landing gear tire were present.
The investigation
A post-accident examination was conducted on the aircraft's landing gear, tires, wheels, brakes, spoilers, and engine thrust reversers. This inspection showed no evidence of pre-accident failure or malfunction. Additionally, records indicated that at the time of the accident, the flight crew had been on duty for approximately 17 hours and 45 minutes.