History of Flight
On October 21, 2020, about 2255 central daylight time, a Learjet 60, registration N1128M, landed on runway 30 instead of runway 34 at Chicago Executive Airport (PWK) in Wheeling, Illinois. The airplane overran the end of the runway and came to rest at the airport perimeter fence. The two pilots and six passengers were not injured. The airplane was operating as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 135 nonscheduled air taxi flight. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time.
The flight departed Cuyahoga County Airport in Cleveland, Ohio about 2158 (2258 eastern daylight time). Initially, the first officer was the pilot flying and the captain was the pilot monitoring. At 2237:28, the captain called for the approach checklist and briefed the approach to PWK. The crew planned a visual approach to runway 34; as a backup, the captain set up the instrument landing system frequency for runway 16 for a possible circle to land on runway 34. The captain later stated that he and the first officer discussed a pre-departure landing distance assessment using wet runway assumptions for runway 34, which indicated a required factored landing distance of 4,790 ft.
At 2241:09, control of the aircraft was exchanged, and the captain became the pilot flying as the airplane descended through 8,000 ft mean sea level, about 50 miles from PWK. The crew navigated around minor rain showers and was cleared direct to PWK at 2249:26. The crew reported difficulty activating the pilot-controlled runway lighting; two attempts were recorded on the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) at 2250:53 and 2252:19. At 2251:01, the first officer indicated he thought he saw the airfield, and at 2252:39 he confirmed having runway 24 in sight. He then informed Chicago approach control that the field was in sight, and the controller cleared the flight for a visual approach to runway 34.
About 2253:00, the airplane began a left turn toward the runway. The first officer announced on the common traffic advisory frequency that the aircraft was on a right base for runway 34 (recorded at 2253:16). The captain asked the first officer to input the Northbrook VOR frequency. The captain reported seeing a runway and a set of precision approach path indicator lights on the right side, which he followed to the runway.
The airplane touched down at 2255:20. The captain stated that the ground spoilers extended normally, thrust reversers were deployed carefully due to a crosswind, and brakes were applied immediately. At 2255:24, the first officer called out 100 knots and 1,000 ft of runway remaining. The captain recognized the airplane would not stop before the end of the runway and steered left to avoid a road. At 2255:45, the CVR recorded sounds of the airplane leaving the runway surface. The aircraft came to rest at the perimeter fence a few seconds later. After evacuating, the crew was informed by ground personnel that they had landed on runway 30 instead of runway 34.
Meteorological Information
At 2252, the PWK automated surface observing system reported wind from 080° at 7 knots, visibility 10 statute miles or greater, an overcast ceiling at 4,500 ft above ground level, temperature 11°C, dew point 8°C, and an altimeter setting of 30.19 inches of mercury. The remarks noted that 0.01 inch of liquid equivalent precipitation had fallen since 2152.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing. The upper wing skin was deformed downward aft of an area of leading-edge damage, and the lower wing skin was deformed and gouged. A right wing spar was also damaged. The damage to the spar and wing skins required major repairs.