Incident Overview
A pilot departed Manaus-Eduardo Gomes International Airport at 0940 local time on a short positioning flight to Manaus-Aeroclub de Flores. While on final approach to runway 11, the engine lost power and subsequently experienced power variations. The pilot attempted an emergency landing, but the aircraft crashed 350 meters short of the runway and burst into flames. The pilot escaped with minor injuries, and the aircraft was destroyed by the post-crash fire.
Official Findings
The investigation identified several contributing factors, all with undetermined status:
- Control skills: Damage observed in the hot engine section components indicated an extrapolation of the ITT limits, possibly causing melt in the compressor turbine blades. This may have resulted from inappropriate use of the EPL resource, leading to engine limit extrapolation, particularly regarding temperature.
- Training: Issues related to the operation of the aircraft were identified that could be associated with the quality or frequency of emergency training for engine failure scenarios.
- Piloting judgment: The loss of lift produced by flap retraction may have caused a sink rate that prevented the aircraft from reaching the runway with the residual engine power. This could indicate an inadequate assessment of the effects of flap retraction on aircraft performance under those conditions.
- Memory: The decisions made may have been influenced by the pilot's difficulty in properly recalling correct procedures, as these actions were memory items.
No single probable cause was stated.