What happened
During a local fire reconnaissance flight, a Cessna (type not specified in source) descended into the ground during the takeoff and initial climb phase. Witnesses observed that while the aircraft became airborne, it failed to climb. The aircraft continued along the runway in a nose-up attitude within ground effect before impacting terrain approximately 600 feet southeast of the departure end of the runway.
The environmental conditions at the time of the accident included an ambient temperature of approximately 107 degrees Fahrenheit, resulting in a calculated density altitude of 5,878 feet mean sea level.
The investigation
On-scene examination of the aircraft revealed that the flaps were in the 30-degree position. This setting was consistent with both the flap actuator position and the cockpit flap indicator.
A bench test of the combined flap/gear selector valve was performed during the investigation. Initial inspection showed that both the gear selector and the flap selector valves were bent, though they remained operational. Additionally, the stop-pin on the flap selector lever was found to be missing. No fluid leakage was observed during this testing. An examination of both engines found no abnormalities that would have prevented normal operations.
Findings
Investigators noted that the aircraft's flaps were extended to 30 degrees at the time of impact. According to the aircraft flight manual, the flaps should be set to 10 degrees (1/4 down) for a normal takeoff.