What happened
An aircraft departed Jean Lesage International Airport, Quebec, for Charlo, New Brunswick, and Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec. After a stop in Charlo, the pilot departed for Îles-de-la-Madeleine at 17:48, waiting for weather conditions to improve. The pilot attempted a LOC (BC)/DME approach to runway 26, but was unable to maintain the localizer and aborted the approach.
During a second approach, the pilot observed a runway while flying over the airport. This led to a 280-degree left turn, and the aircraft touched down on the final 200 to 300 feet of runway 34. The aircraft could not be stopped before exiting the airport perimeter, prompting the pilot to execute a right turn. During this maneuver, the nosewheel and left main landing gear detached. The aircraft came to a halt 270 feet from the end of the runway and 150 feet from the water. There were no injuries to the occupants, and the aircraft was evacuated quickly.
The investigation
The investigation established that at the time of the incident, the sky was partly obscured with a ceiling of 300 feet and visibility of five miles in fog. The pilot's authorization for solo flight required that any flight terminated at an airport must meet the alternate weather minimums specified in the Canada Air Pilot; for Îles-de-la-Madeleine, this minimum is 800 feet and two miles visibility. The actual ceiling of 300 feet was below this requirement.
While the pilot reported erratic lateral deviation indications on the first approach, maintenance checks found the approach system parameters to be within limits. The pilot noted that he used navigation receiver No. 1 but failed to use navigation receiver No. 2 to cross-check the indications. Additionally, the investigation found that the pilot experienced disorientation when crossing runway 34 and felt personal pressure to satisfy passengers to assist the company's charter performance.
Findings
- The pilot conducted an approach in weather conditions for which he was not authorized.
- The pilot landed the aircraft on a runway with insufficient remaining distance to prevent an overshoot.
- Poor horizontal visibility at 300 feet prevented the pilot from identifying runway 26 and executing a safe maneuver.
- The pilot's desire to satisfy passengers acted as a contributing factor to the decision to proceed.