Cessna 414 Chancellor

The crew was completing a flight from Colmar to Zurich with an intermediate stop in Basel. While on a night approach to runway 28 at Zurich-Kloten Airport, both engines lost power simultaneously. The aircraft lost height, struck a three-floor building and crashed on a second one located few dozen metres further. The captain was seriously injured while the copilot was killed.

Witnesses observed the airplane overfly their homes at low altitude in a tight circular pattern. A witness about 1/2 mile from the airport '. . . watched the plane try to make a turn to the left trying to go back west to the Highland County Airport. The plane made a sharp turn, seemed to be having difficulty stabilizing the airplane . . . .' Also, a witness reported that she heard a loud noise, and then she observed an airplane just barely above the trees. The landing gear was down, and the airplane 'kept dipping up and down.' Another witness reported the airplane was 'wobbling left to right,' and then it descended into trees, struck vehicles, came to rest against a tree, and was destroyed by a post crash fire. A person, who flew with the pilot as a safety pilot on several occasions, reported that the pilot had a habit of making steep close-in turns, from downwind to base, to final; and he noticed 'lack in airspeed management during approach.' Examination of the wreckage did not disclose any preimpact failure of the airplane or engine.

Shortly after takeoff, the pilot contacted Charleston Approach Control to pick up his IFR clearance to the destination. The controller instructed the pilot to maintain VFR and he then attempted to coordinate with Washington Center for the clearance. The controller subsequently was unable to establish radar contact with the flight and he also lost radio contact with the pilot. The aircraft collided with the upslope of high terrain in weather conditions comprised of fog, sleet, and snow. The accident site was about 14 miles from the departure point. Toxicological testing of the pilot revealed benzoylecgonine.

Recorded radar data showed the aircraft was flying in an area of mountainous terrain. Mountain tops in the area were reported to be obscured. Radar data showed that the aircraft first descended to a low altitude as it flew up a valley, then it climbed until impacting rising terrain about 7,200 feet msl. Wreckage was scattered over 300 feet up the mountain slope. About 32 miles southwest at Bakersfield (elevation 507 feet), the 1000 pdt weather was in part: 4500 feet scattered, 6000 feet overcase, visibility 20 miles, wind from 260 degrees at 10 knots. Nearby residents reported that the mountain was obscured in clouds at the time of the accident. During postmortem toxicology tests, a low level of ethanol (23 mg/dl) was detected in muscle fluid specimen, probably from post-mortem production. No ethanol was detected in brain fluid.

The pilot took off from an uncontrolled airport. He attempted to obtain an IFR clearance and reported that he was VFR at 3,500 feet. While air traffic control personnel were locating the flight plan and coordinating the IFR clearance, they lost radio contact with the pilot. The pilot continued to fly towards his destination, transiting rising mountainous terrain which was partially obscured by clouds. Wreckage was located about 28 nautical miles from the departure airport, at the 4,050-foot level. There was no evidence of mechanical failure or malfunction. According to FAR Part 91.3, the pilot had the ultimate authority for the operation of the airplane, and in the case of an in-flight emergency, had the authority to deviate from flight rules "to the extent required to meet that emergency." According to the AIM, an emergency could be either "a distress or an urgency condition." An urgency condition would exist "the moment the pilot becomes doubtful about position... weather, or any other condition that could adversely affect flight safety." Under FAR Part 91.3, the pilot would have been authorized to climb the airplane under IFR conditions, even if he were to enter controlled airspace.

The pilot was cleared for the VOR runway 17 approach. Field elevation and the minimum descent altitude were 590 and 980 feet respectively. The missed approach point was 10.4 miles outbound from the Waco VOR, which coincided with the runway threshold. The pilot stated that the passenger seated in the right front seat established visual contact with the airport. After confirming that the airport was in sight and the runway environment identified, the pilot continued his descent towards the runway to land on runway 17. The pilot further stated that 'I realized that there would not be adequate runway to safely land, and initiated a right turn to execute a missed approach.' The right wing of the airplane impacted the top of the trees. The FAA inspector at the scene reported that after impacting the trees, the airplane continued through the trees for approximately 400 feet on a track of 344 degrees prior to coming to rest on a heading of 230 degrees.

While climbing through 6,300 feet, the pilot reported the complete loss of power on the right engine. Approx 4 min later, and after the pilot had established an emergency descent for a landing, he reported that the left engine had also lost power. The airplane impacted a driveway and skidded into a building. Examination revealed that the right engine failed due to shifting of the engine case halves. Review of the engine maintenance records indicated that several cylinders had been replaced in recent months; the cylinder through bolts are used to torque the engine case. A reason for the loss of power on the left engine was not determined.

The emergency medical service (EMS/medevac) flight was dispatched to transport a patient in response to a medical emergency. During arrival to the destination, the pilot contacted the airport unicom for advisories and was advised to land on runway 25. Runway 25 had a 2.2 percent uphill grade and was restricted to landings only. After landing, the airplane was refueled and the patient was put on board. The pilot back-taxied on runway 25 and proceeded to take off uphill with the airplane near its maximum gross weight. According to ground witnesses, there was a tailwind, which they estimated was between 4 and 15 knots. The temperature was about 100 degrees, and the density altitude was about 3,200 feet. After the airplane became airborne, the pilot started an immediate left turn to avoid rising terrain. However, the left tip tank contacted the ground, and the airplane cartwheeled. It came to rest about 711 feet from the departure end of the runway. The flaps and landing gear were found fully extended; the published configuration for takeoff data in the flight manual was for 'wing flaps - up.' The airport had no signs to indicate runway use restrictions; however, the restrictions were published in the airport facility directory.

Just prior to the accident the airplane was seen on final approach flying in an erratic manner at a low altitude. Two witnesses riding in a car wrote they saw the airplane, 'going up and down toward the ground. We could hear a faint clicking noise, and the propellers were going around slowly.' The witnesses saw the airplane take 'a short nosedive and crashed.' They wrote that the airplane was not traveling 'very fast and it was pretty level to the ground.' The witnesses could not hear the engines because they were in a car. According to fuel records, the pilot of N1576T put 112 gallons of fuel on board the airplane on march 17, 1994, and the flight started at 1030 on march 19, 1994. The accident occurred at 1355, for a total flight time of 3 hours and 25 minutes. Using fuel consumption data for this aircraft it was estimated that fuel exhaustion would occur after 3 hours and 4 minutes of flight. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.

A student pilot in American AA-1A, N9317L, was on an approach to land on runway 05 of the uncontrolled airport, as a commercial pilot in Cessna 414A, N47WD, was on an approach to land on runway 14. The two runways intersected near their approach ends. The two aircraft collided as they were about to touch down at dusk over the intersection. Witnesses on the ground stated that they observed lights on the Cessna, but did not observe any lights on the American. Witnesses in other aircraft in the area stated that they heard the pilot of the american announcing his position in the traffic pattern and landing intentions, but did not hear the pilot of the Cessna on the Unicom frequency. The pilot of the Cessna stated that he announced his intention to land on runway 14 over Unicom frequency 123.0. The published Unicom frequency for the Statesboro Airport was 122.8.