History of the Flight
On 18 November 2009, at 1332Z, a Jetstream 4100 aircraft registered ZS-OMZ, operated by South African Airlink (Pty) Ltd, was scheduled to operate a domestic flight from Port Elizabeth to East London. The aircraft had 3 crew members and 29 passengers on board. During the take-off run, at 70 Kts, the aircraft veered left off the runway. The captain applied full right rudder and aileron into the wind but was unable to arrest the veering to the left. The aircraft departed the runway on the left-hand side and stopped 35m beyond the runway edge in long grass and level terrain. After the aircraft came to a stop, the aircraft was evacuated.
Injuries and Damage
Nobody sustained any injuries. The aircraft did not sustain any damage.
Meteorological Information
At the time of the incident, the wind direction was 114°TN, wind speed 9 Kt gusting 12 Kt. Temperature was 16.2°C. Dew point was unknown. Cloud cover was scattered with a cloud base of 4000 ft. Visibility was good. The weather did not play a role in the incident.
Probable Cause
The investigation revealed that the Steering Control Cable was damaged during a previous installation, which resulted in wear damage to the gear inside the Steering Control Box, leading to slippage of the cable on the gear.