Accident Details
On July 17, 2010, at approximately 1500 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 182P, registration N777RM, was substantially damaged following a runway excursion during an aborted takeoff from Crisfield Municipal Airport (W41), Crisfield, Maryland. The certificated commercial pilot and three passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. The flight was originating at the time, with an intended destination of Northeast Philadelphia Airport (PNE), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The pilot reported that a preflight inspection and engine run-up revealed no abnormalities. The aircraft contained 50 gallons of fuel. Wind conditions were light from the west, and the windsock indicated favoring runway 32. The airplane was configured for a normal takeoff with zero degrees of wing flaps.
The pilot initiated the takeoff from runway 32, which is 2,490 feet long. Partway down the runway, the pilot elected to abort due to lack of airspeed. He stated that he attempted to lift off at 85 miles per hour, but the airplane would not become airborne. Two more takeoff attempts were made without success. By the time the decision to abort was made, the airplane was near the end of the runway. Both the pilot and a passenger applied brakes, but the airplane continued off the runway into grass, where it impacted a ditch approximately 2 feet deep and came to rest upright. All four occupants exited normally. The pilot attributed the inability to become airborne to heat and humidity.
Post-accident examination by an FAA inspector revealed that the nose landing gear had separated and the fuselage and engine firewall sustained substantial damage.
Aircraft and Pilot Information
The pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land and sea, airplane multiengine, glider, and instrument airplane, as well as a flight instructor certificate. He reported 3,845 total flight hours, with 200 hours in the accident make and model. His most recent FAA third-class medical certificate was issued in April 2009.
The airplane, manufactured in 1973, was a high-wing, four-place monoplane of metal construction with a fixed tricycle landing gear. It was powered by a 235-horsepower Teledyne Continental Motors O-470 engine. Its most recent annual inspection was on March 24, 2010, at a total airframe time of 6,001 hours.
Weather and Performance
Weather conditions observed at 1454 at Wallops Flight Facility, approximately 18 miles east of the accident airport, included wind from 330 degrees at 8 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, few clouds at 4,900 feet, temperature 34°C, dew point 19°C, and an altimeter setting of 29.94 inches of mercury.
The pilot reported the aircraft weight at the time was 2,840 lbs. According to the pilot's operating handbook, takeoff ground roll at this weight with 20 degrees of flaps would have been approximately 590 feet, and approximately 1,110 feet to clear a 50-foot obstacle under the prevailing atmospheric conditions. The handbook also noted that using 20 degrees of flaps reduces ground roll and total distance over an obstacle by about 20 percent.
In the accident report's recommendation section, the pilot suggested that using a short-field takeoff technique with 20 degrees of flaps might have been more successful than the standard method employed.