Incident Overview
On an instrument flight rules flight from Montmagny to Montreal/St-Hubert, Quebec, the aircraft, operating as flight MAX100, was carrying 2 pilots and 4 passengers. At approximately 1700 Eastern Daylight Time, the aircraft positioned on the threshold of 3010-foot-long runway 26 and began the takeoff roll.
Sequence of Events
During rotation at roughly 100 knots, the flight crew observed numerous birds in the last quarter of the runway. As the aircraft became airborne, it struck the birds. The left engine subsequently lost power, causing the aircraft to yaw and roll to the left. The aircraft lost altitude and touched the runway to the left of the centerline, less than 100 feet from the runway end. The takeoff was aborted, but the aircraft overran the runway, coming to rest in a field 885 feet from the runway end.
Evacuation and Damage
All occupants evacuated the aircraft via the main door. There were no injuries. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
Findings
The official investigation determined that the bird strike occurred on takeoff at an altitude of less than 50 feet. Gulls were ingested in the left engine, which then lost power. Following the loss of engine power, the flight crew had difficulty controlling the aircraft. The aircraft touched the ground, forcing the pilot flying to abort the takeoff when the runway remaining was insufficient to stop the aircraft, resulting in the runway overrun.
Additional findings noted risks: although a cannon was in place, it was not working on the day of the accident, which increased the risk of a bird strike. The presence of a goose and duck farm outside the airport perimeter but near a runway increases the risk of attracting gulls. Operators subject to Canadian Aviation Regulations Subpart 703 are not prohibited from having an aircraft take off from a runway that is shorter than the accelerate-stop distance of that aircraft as determined from the performance diagrams, exposing travellers to risks associated with a runway overrun when a takeoff is aborted. The absence of a cockpit voice recorder (CVR) makes it harder to ascertain material facts, potentially delaying investigations and compromising public safety.