- Date
- August 9, 2008, 09:00 local (14:00 UTC)
- Place
- St Paul, MN
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N69XMorane-Saulnier MS-760/B
- Defining event
- Takeoff-rejected takeoff: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 26, 2008
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA-Minneapolis FSDO
- FAA report
- 20080809846349A
- Case key
- 68925
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
Restriction of the elevator controls due to the presence of the seat belt buckled around the co-pilot control stick. An additional cause was the failure of the pilot to verify that the flight controls were unobstructed before flight. Contributing factors were the wet grass encountered during the runway excursion, and the sign and light impacted during the event.
Findings · 5
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot stated that he initiated the takeoff as normal. However, as the airplane accelerated through 80 knots the nose lifted "abruptly." He could not move the control stick far enough forward to lower the nose and level the airplane. As a result, he elected to reject the takeoff. The pilot used elevator trim, which lowered the nose enough for landing. The pilot reported the airplane touched down on the runway, but with the left wing low. The airplane drifted to the left and departed the runway pavement "at a shallow angle." The nose wheel steering had been disengaged during takeoff roll in accordance with standard flight manual procedures. As a result, the pilot was limited to differential braking to maintain control. The airplane encountered wet grass adjacent to the runway, and subsequently struck a runway sign and a light before coming to a stop. A post accident inspection revealed that the right front (co-pilot) seat belt had been buckled around the flight control stick, out of sight of the pilot, restricting full movement of the controls. The airplane sustained impact damage to the left wing, including the leading edge fuel tank and wing ribs. The pilot commented that he removed the co-pilot control stick to eliminate any possibility of a similar event in the future.
Factual narrative
The pilot stated that he initiated the takeoff as normal. However, as the airplane accelerated through 80 knots the nose lifted "abruptly." He could not move the control stick far enough forward to lower the nose and level the airplane. As a result, he elected to reject the takeoff. The pilot used elevator trim, which lowered the nose enough for landing. The pilot reported the airplane touched down on the runway, but with the left wing low. The airplane drifted to the left and departed the runway pavement "at a shallow angle." The nose wheel steering had been disengaged during takeoff roll in accordance with standard flight manual procedures. As a result, the pilot was limited to differential braking to maintain control. The airplane encountered wet grass adjacent to the runway, and subsequently struck a runway sign and a light before coming to a stop. A post accident inspection revealed that the right front (co-pilot) seat belt had been buckled around the flight control stick, out of sight of the pilot, restricting full movement of the controls. The airplane sustained impact damage to the left wing, including the leading edge fuel tank and wing ribs. The pilot commented that he removed the co-pilot control stick to eliminate any possibility of a similar event in the future.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N69X
- Reported as
- Morane-Saulnier MS-760/B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 90
- Airframe hours
- 2,945
- Engine
- Turbomeca V1-C2, 1,081 lbs thrust, turbo jet
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 1, 2007
- Departed
- STP · St Paul, MN
- Destination
- RPD · Rice Lake, WI
- Airport
- STP · St Paul Downtown, runway 32, 6,491 × 150 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
- 64
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 1, 2008
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,826 total · 918 in this make and model · 1,750 as pilot in command · 9 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,500 ft broken
- Temperature
- 72 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.94 inHg
- Observed at
- STP
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.