- Date
- August 10, 1992, 17:50 local (21:50 UTC)
- Place
- Gainesville, GA
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N920CCessna 441
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 29, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920810030309A
- Case key
- 8643
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The poor inflight decision by the pilot in command in that after a partial loss of power, he shut down the wrong engine, did not follow the emergency checklist, did not raise the flaps, and did not retract the landing gear. A factor in the accident was the inflight collision with birds during the takeoff climb.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot reported that immediately after takeoff, he had a collision with a flight of birds. He stated that the right engine immediately had a partial loss of power. He stated that he did not attempt to raise the landing gear nor the flaps following the loss of engine power, and the aircraft would not maintain altitude. Examination of the aircraft engines revealed that there was rotational scratching of the turbine housings on the right engine, and no rotational scratching on the turbine housing of the left engine.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N920C
- Reported as
- Cessna 441
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 441-0020
- Engine
- Garrett TPE-331, 635 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Executive/Corporate · Part 91
- Operator
- Air Travel Services, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Air Travel Services, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Continuous airworthiness · January 2, 2000
- Departed
- GVL
- Destination
- BNA · Nashville, TN
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- GVL · Lee Gilmer Memorial, runway 29, 4,001 × 100 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 53
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 8,000 total · 305 in this make and model · 7,500 as pilot in command · 90 in the last 90 days · 35 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 95 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- AHN, 32 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.