No fatalities

1990-07-31: Aérospatiale SN.601 Corvette (F-BTTU) — Service de Formation Aéronautique & de Contrôle Technique - SFACT — Saint-Yan, France

Saint-Yan, FranceTakeoff (climb)

On July 31, 1990, an Aérospatiale SN.601 Corvette (registration F-BTTU) operated by Service de Formation Aéronautique & de Contrôle Technique - SFACT was involved in an aviation accident near Saint-Yan, France during takeoff. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The flaps were mistakenly retracted from 30° to zero prior to takeoff while the aircraft was rolling, preventing rotation and leading to an overrun and collision with the ILS antenna. This summary draws on records from the Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A); 1 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

Sourcesthe Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A)Primary reportUpdated 1781212719Data APIEditorial standards

During a training flight, pilots mistakenly retracted flaps to zero during a simulated engine failure, causing the aircraft to fail to rotate, overrun runway 33R, and collide with an ILS antenna. Both pilots sustained minor injuries; aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

Incident

A training aircraft operated on behalf of the Service de Formation Aéronautique & de Contrôle Technique (SFACT) was performing local training flights at Saint-Yan Airport. The flight involved multiple 'touch-and-go' maneuvers, all completed successfully.

Sequence of Events

After landing, the crew simulated an engine failure by reducing power on the left engine. While the aircraft was rolling on runway 33R, the flaps were mistakenly retracted from 30° to zero before the planned takeoff. As a result, the aircraft was unable to rotate into a nose-up attitude. It continued along the runway, overran the end, and eventually collided with the Instrument Landing System (ILS) antenna.

Aftermath

Both pilots escaped from the aircraft with minor injuries. The aircraft itself sustained damage beyond repair. The investigation determined that the inadvertent flap retraction prevented the aircraft from achieving the necessary lift for takeoff, leading to the overrun and subsequent collision.

Probable cause

The flaps were mistakenly retracted from 30° to zero prior to takeoff while the aircraft was rolling, preventing rotation and leading to an overrun and collision with the ILS antenna.