What happened
While performing a takeoff roll at Huntsville Airport, an aircraft encountered a mechanical failure at the moment it reached V1 speed. As the pilot-in-command initiated the rotation maneuver, the nose landing gear unexpectedly retracted. This sudden loss of support caused the front of the plane to drop toward the runway surface.
The impact forced the aircraft to slide several yards along the pavement before continuing its path off the runway. The vessel eventually came to a stop approximately 300 feet beyond the end of the paved surface. Despite the severity of the excursion, all 16 occupants were successfully evacuated from the plane without injury.
The incident resulted in the aircraft being declared a total loss, as it sustained damage beyond repair.
Findings
Investigations into the event focused on the sudden mechanical movement of the landing gear. The primary factor identified was the unexplained retraction of the nose gear during the critical takeoff phase.