What happened
On December 21, 2002, a Socata TB-20 Trinidad departed from Brno-Turany airport in the Czech Republic, bound for Paderborn-Lippstadt, Germany. The flight was conducted under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR). Shortly after taking off from runway 28 at 10:40 local time, the aircraft deviated from its cleared track. Instead of proceeding toward the 'BITSI' waypoint, the aircraft turned left at a low altitude of approximately 220 feet AGL.
As the aircraft entered a progressively steeper climb under Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC), it lost forward airspeed. The aircraft eventually banked sharply to the right. Although the crew briefly communicated to air traffic control at 10:43:29 that they were returning to normal flight, the aircraft entered a knife-edge attitude with a high pitch angle, ultimately impacting an open field. The accident resulted in 3 fatalities and the total destruction of the aircraft.
The investigation
The investigation was conducted by the Czech authorities, with the BFU reviewing the full English-language report. The inquiry focused on the flight path deviations and the pilot's ability to maintain control during the climb under IMC. The investigation established that the aircraft's loss of speed during an unusual flight attitude was the primary driver of the accident, noting that the pilot could not recover due to the low altitude and lack of visual references.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was a 180-degree error in the pre-selected departure course, which the autopilot initially followed.
- Upon realizing the error, the pilot transitioned to manual control to attempt a rapid correction.
- The pilot was unable to maintain coordinated flight under instrument conditions due to the high-stress nature of the situation.
- The aircraft's airspeed dropped below the minimum required speed during the initiated turn.
- A contributing factor was that the aircraft's weight exceeded the maximum takeoff weight (MTOW).