No fatalities

28 Apr 2014: BEECH A36 — ZTJ AVIATION LLC — Hazlehurst, GA

Hazlehurst, GA, United States

On 28 Apr 2014, a BEECH A36 operated by ZTJ AVIATION LLC was involved in an aviation accident near Hazlehurst, GA. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: An inadvertent collision with wildlife while landing. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

On a clear, windless night, a pilot on a straight-in visual approach struck deer while landing, resulting in substantial aircraft damage and the collapse of the nose landing gear. All three occupants evacuated uninjured.

Incident Overview

A pilot returning to his home airport executed a long, straight-in visual approach on a clear night with no wind. Upon touchdown of the main landing gear, the pilot observed a "flash of brown" from his left side and subsequently felt three rapid, distinct impacts. As the pilot lowered the nose landing gear to the runway, the gear collapsed.

Occupants and Damage

The three occupants of the airplane egressed without injury. The aircraft sustained substantial damage. Following the incident, several fatally injured deer were discovered on the runway.

Aftermath

In response to the incident, the state department of transportation accelerated the planning and funding of a wildlife mitigation fence around the airport.

Contributing factors

Effect on operation