History of Flight
On September 21, 2023, about 1436 eastern daylight time, an Embraer SA EMB-545 MOD airplane, registration N434FX, operated by Flexjet LLC as Flexjet flight 434, was substantially damaged during a landing approach to St. Simons Island Airport (SSI), Georgia. The pilot, copilot, and six passengers were not injured. The flight was conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91K as a fractional operation.
The aircraft departed Westchester County Airport (HPN), White Plains, New York, at 1239 for SSI. The crew reported an uneventful departure and en route phase. The pilot, flying from the left seat, elected to fly the GPS runway 4 approach to allow more alignment time. He selected flaps 3 due to gusting wind and used autothrottle.
About 10 miles out, the copilot reported the runway in sight and made a stable approach callout at 500 ft. NTSB performance data confirmed a stable approach up to that point. The autopilot was disconnected at 1435:49 at about 500 ft. As the aircraft descended through 100–150 ft, it crossed a tree line, and the pilot felt an "uplift" followed by porpoising. Pitch corrections via sidestick did not yield expected response. The copilot observed the pilot making aggressive sidestick inputs and offered to take control, but his sidestick input also seemed ineffective. The AOA limiter protection engaged due to a wind gust-induced AOA increase at about 162 ft radio altitude, limiting elevator response to pilot commands. Neither crewmember reported awareness of the AOA limiter engagement.
At 1436:28, a TAWS "sink rate" alert sounded. In the final seconds, the pilot commanded full nose-up pitch; the fly-by-wire system provided about 3° nose-up elevator. A horizontal gust reduced airspeed by 8 kts. The copilot also commanded full nose-up pitch about 1.5 seconds before touchdown, but the system responded with 5.5° nose-down elevator 0.5 second before impact. The aircraft struck the ground at 1436:32.
The copilot described a hard touchdown before the runway threshold, a bounce, and a skid. The aircraft veered right, did not decelerate normally, and the emergency brake handle had no effect. It departed the right side of the runway, struck a concrete sign base, and skidded sideways before coming to rest on grass. All occupants deplaned via the main cabin door after engine shutdown.
Personnel Information
The pilot held an airline transport pilot certificate with multiple type ratings, including EMB-550, and a flight instructor certificate. He reported about 10,900 total flight hours, with 1,872 hours in the accident make and model.
The copilot held an airline transport pilot certificate with type ratings including EMB-550, and about 16,686 total flight hours, with 306 hours in the accident make and model.
Aircraft Information
The Embraer EMB-545 MOD, manufactured in 2020, is a low-wing, T-tail, pressurized, twin-engine turbofan aircraft with fly-by-wire flight controls. Its most recent continuous airworthiness inspection was completed on April 11, 2023, at 2,863 hours. At the time of the accident, total time was about 3,424 hours. No maintenance discrepancies related to the accident were reported.
The AOA limiter protection system is designed to prevent stall. It engages when AOA exceeds a threshold, limiting elevator response. Once engaged, disengagement requires AOA reduction to about 2° below threshold, airspeed above 1.1 times reference stall speed, and load factor demand-actual difference ≤0.3 g for 1 second. Rapid oscillating pitch inputs can delay disengagement.
The low-speed awareness display includes color bands on the speed tape: white (VSS), yellow (VAOA), and red (VLIM). The Pitch Limit Indicator appears when AOA limiter protection is engaged.
Meteorological Information
The SSI automated surface observation at 1453 reported wind from 050° at 13 kts gusting 23 kts, visibility 10 statute miles or greater, clear skies, temperature 29°C, dew point 23°C, altimeter 30.03 inHg. A terminal aerodrome forecast issued at 1324 indicated wind 050° at 14 kts gusting 20 kts, with thunderstorms and rain showers. Convective SIGMET 57E was active, warning of thunderstorms and severe turbulence.
Wreckage and Impact Information
Both main landing gear were damaged, with struts penetrating the wing tops. The lower left fuselage forward of the airstairs was torn open. Right wing flaps, outboard spoiler, and aileron were damaged. The aircraft skidded about 2,531 ft down the runway, then departed the right side, striking lights and a sign before stopping on grass. Total ground distance from initial contact to rest was about 3,083 ft.