Accident Details
On June 1, 2011, about 2140 Alaska daylight time, an Eclipse EA-500 airplane, registration N168TT, sustained substantial damage during a go-around at Nome Airport, Nome, Alaska. The commercial pilot and the sole passenger were not injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and an instrument flight rules flight plan was in effect. The flight originated from Ugolny Airport (UHMA), Anadyr, Russia.
In a written statement to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), the pilot reported that he was flying a visual approach to runway 10. He noted that his airspeed was exceptionally high but elected to continue. On short final, he realized he would be unable to land and initiated a go-around. During the go-around, the airplane’s fuselage contacted the runway. The pilot maintained control and subsequently realized he had not extended the landing gear. He lowered the gear and landed uneventfully. The only damage he observed was a broken antenna and missing paint on the belly skid pad.
Post-Accident Inspection
The pilot was informed that no U.S. Customs officers were present in Nome, requiring a flight to Anchorage to clear customs. Citing fatigue, he decided to depart the next morning.
On June 2, the pilot conducted a test flight before proceeding to Anchorage. During the takeoff roll, the airplane experienced a vibration described by the pilot as “like a violent nose wheel shimmy.” He aborted the takeoff and arranged for a mechanic to inspect the airplane. The mechanic discovered that the center wing carry-through structure was cracked; the belly skid pad had deflected upward into a stringer attached to the structure.
Equipment and Data
The pilot initially reported no mechanical anomalies but later stated that the airplane’s flaps were inoperative during the accident flight. In an email, he indicated that a flap failure caution had appeared, and he had landed in Japan and Korea without flaps. The IIC verified that the inboard flap actuator had over-traveled during retraction, leaving the flaps stuck in the retracted position. According to the Eclipse Airplane Flight Manual (AFM), Section 3, a “FLAPS FAIL” caution message displayed on the ground requires the action “DO NOT FLY.”
The airplane was equipped with a Diagnostic Storage Unit (DSU) that records select parameters. Data from the DSU for the accident flight was extracted and examined by the NTSB Vehicle Recorders Division. The data indicated that the flap handle was in the up position, airspeed never dropped below 140 knots, and the landing gear and gear handle remained up, corroborating the pilot’s account.
The AFM, Section 7, lists conditions for a “CONFIG GEAR” warning: flaps extended to LDG setting and altitude below 12,500 feet MSL; airspeed less than 120 knots, both throttles below 30 percent, and altitude below 12,500 feet; or airspeed between 120 and 140 knots, either throttle below 30 percent, and altitude below 12,500 feet. Under the reported conditions and DSU data, no gear warning would have been generated. The airplane was also equipped with a Honeywell KGP-560 Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS), which does not provide aural warnings for flap or landing gear configuration.