History of Flight
On April 19, 2008, about 1010 Pacific daylight time, a Cessna 510 Citation Mustang, N54PV, sustained substantial damage after the pilot performed an intentional ground loop during the landing roll on runway 24 at McClellan-Palomar Airport, Carlsbad, California. California Natural Products operated the airplane under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The commercial pilot and three passengers were not injured. The personal flight departed from Lincoln Regional Airport, Lincoln, California, about 0854, with a planned destination of Carlsbad. At the time of the accident, the pilot had canceled his instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan and was executing a visual flight rules (VFR) approach to runway 24 in visual meteorological conditions.
The pilot reported that after departing Lincoln, he was cleared to 35,000 feet mean sea level (msl) as requested. During a standard terminal arrival route (STAR), the right primary flight display (PFD) began to flicker at about 30,000 feet msl. About 5 minutes later, while descending through 28,000 feet msl, the left PFD flashed an alert indicating autopilot disengagement. The pilot felt heavy control forces and noted the autopilot activation light was off. He also found the electric pitch trim inoperative and used the manual trim wheel. The flight director bars indicated about 10 degrees pitch up despite the descent.
Flying manually, the pilot continued the STAR and reported the autopilot malfunction to air traffic control (ATC). While descending to 5,000 feet msl, the airplane encountered instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). Controllers vectored the pilot to the instrument landing system (ILS) for runway 24. The airplane broke out of clouds at 2,600 feet msl, and the pilot made a visual approach. He stated he was overwhelmed by the electrical failures and fatigued from hand-flying for about 45 minutes.
The airplane crossed the runway threshold with flaps fully extended (30 degrees) and about 15 knots faster than the predetermined Vref speed of 87 knots. The pilot thought the runway was long enough for a delayed touchdown. After touching down beyond the midpoint of the 4,897-foot-long runway, the pilot realized that despite braking and speed brakes, the airplane would overrun the runway end, which had a downsloping cliff. He elected to perform a 180-degree course reversal by rapidly turning the control yoke and depressing the left rudder pedal. The airplane ground looped, coming to rest in a dirt area south of the runway; the main landing gear collapsed and the flaps folded under the wings. The pilot did not attempt to reset the autopilot.
An FAA inspector observed the airplane high on approach. A controller asked, "do you think you can make it," to which the pilot replied "yes." The airplane touched down past taxiway A4.
Personnel Information
The 57-year-old pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with airplane single and multiengine land ratings and a CE510 type rating, along with an instrument rating. His second-class medical certificate was issued August 1, 2007, with the limitation that glasses must be available for near vision. He reported 1,398 total flight hours, including 140 hours in Cessna 510 airplanes, 279 hours of instrument experience, and 35 hours of night flight. In the preceding 90, 30, and 24 days, he flew approximately 78, 38, and 2 hours as pilot-in-command. He completed initial CE510 type rating training at Flight Safety Training Centers on September 17, 2007, with a limitation of 25 hours of supervised operating experience before acting as pilot-in-command, which he subsequently accomplished.
Aircraft Information
The accident airplane was a Cessna Mustang CE510, serial number 510-0028, manufactured in 2007. It held a standard airworthiness certificate (normal category) issued September 19, 2007, and was certified under FAR Part 23. It could be operated by single or two pilots, with a type rating required. The last periodic inspection occurred on April 14, 2008. At the time of the accident, the airframe and both engines had accumulated 120 hours total time. The airplane was equipped with a Garmin G1000 Integrated Flight Deck with a GFC700 autopilot.
Meteorological Information
A special aviation weather report (METAR) at 1012 reported winds from 130 degrees at 8 knots, overcast ceiling at 2,700 feet, visibility 8 miles, temperature 14°C, dew point 8°C, and altimeter 29.95 inHg.
Airport Information
McClellan-Palomar Airport is a FAR Part 139 certificated facility with a single asphalt runway (6/24) 4,897 feet long and 150 feet wide. Runway 24 has a Medium Intensity Approach Lighting System with Runway Alignment Indicator Lights (MALSR), Runway End Identifier Lights (REIL), and a 4-light Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI) with a 3.2-degree glide path. The terrain elevation at the west end of runway 24 centerline was 328.15 feet msl. The airport has an ATC tower staffed by FAA personnel, and Southern California TRACON provides approach/departure control.
Tests and Research
A post-accident examination at West Coast Jet Services revealed that the wing flaps were hyper-extended and folded under the wings, consistent with full extension at impact, and the main landing gear were folded. All circuit breakers were in. With power applied, the right PFD was dim and flickered with static; the left PFD operated normally. Swapping the screens showed the same flickering on the right screen when placed on the left side, indicating the right PFD unit was faulty. Autopilot activation showed no anomalies. Fault log analysis revealed that at 09:19:45, the integrated avionics unit logged a yaw damper disconnect, followed by a preflight test failure 18 seconds later. A Garmin representative stated the sequence indicated a servo processor reset, causing the autopilot to disconnect, and the preflight test failure could be remedied by cycling power. Cessna Service Bulletin SB510-34-02 provided a software upgrade to reduce abnormal autopilot disconnects.