What happened
An on-demand charter flight operated by Execuflight, traveling from Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport to Akron Fulton International Airport, crashed while performing a non-precision localizer approach to runway 25. The aircraft, a Hawker 700A, departed controlled flight and struck a four-unit residential building in Akron. The accident resulted in nine fatalities, including the captain, the first officer, and seven passengers. There were no injuries reported on the ground. The impact and subsequent fire destroyed the aircraft.
During the approach, the flight crew attempted to reduce speed following instructions from air traffic control. The first officer configured the aircraft with landing gear and flaps, but the approach was conducted with an improper flap setting of 45 degrees. While the aircraft was cleared to maintain 3,000 feet MSL until established on the localizer, the crew was already established on the localizer but failed to descend to the required minimum crossing altitude of 2,300 feet MSL. As the aircraft approached the final approach fix, the crew's descent rate increased significantly, reaching approximately 2,000 feet per minute. The aircraft reached the minimum descent altitude (MDA) with an airspeed below the required minimum and in an unstabilized configuration. Shortly after descending below the MDA, the captain ordered the aircraft to level off. Due to the low airspeed and high drag from the improper flap setting, the aircraft entered a stall and impacted the building.
Findings
- The approach briefing was unstructured, inconsistent, and incomplete, and the crew failed to complete the approach checklist.
- The flight crew lacked a shared understanding of the approach procedures due to the inadequate briefing.
- The first officer utilized a 45-degree flap configuration, which deviated from the company's established approach profile.
- The captain failed to take control of the aircraft or initiate a missed approach despite the aircraft being in an unstabilized condition.
- The aircraft's airspeed decayed below safe limits, leading to an aerodynamic stall during the attempt to level off.