- Date
- April 27, 1994, 22:56 local (Apr 28, 1994, 02:56 UTC)
- Place
- Stratford, CT
- Injuries
- 8 fatal, 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N990RAPiper PA31
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report April 12, 1995
- Report
- Board-adopted at Board Meeting
- Investigation class
- Class 1
- NTSB office
- Major Investigations Division
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA report
- 19940427009289A
- Case key
- 10984
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 failure of the captain to use the available ILS glideslope, his failure to execute a go-around when conditions were not suitable for landing, and his failure to land the airplane at a point sufficient to allow for a safe stopping distance; the fatalities were caused by the presence of the nonfrangible blast fence and the absence of a safety area at the end of the runway. (NTSB Report AAR-94/08)
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 captain had ILS glideslope data available during the approach but did not fly the ILS glideslope. The partial obscuration of the airport environment, due to ground fog, contributed to the captain's failure to recognize that the airplane was high on both his approach and landing. The destruction of the airplane and the resulting occupant injuries were a direct result of the collision with the blast fence. FAA interaction & communication with local communities, although persistent, were unsuccessful in gaining support for runway safety area improvements and for the installation of approach lighting for runway 6. The passenger seats had been improperly assembled using unapproved parts, and seat belts had been installed incorrectly.
Factual narrative
See NTSB blue cover report NTSB/AAR-94-008
Aircraft
- Registration
- N990RA
- Reported as
- Piper PA31 (350)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 31-7405417
- Engine
- Lycoming TIO-540-J2BD, 350 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Action Air Charters, doing business as Action Air Charters
- Registered owner
- Jib, Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Aerobatic; Special, Experimental (Special); Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 17, 1994
- Departed
- ACY · Atlantic City, NJ
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- BDR · Sikorsky Memorial, runway 6, 4,677 × 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
- 33
- Certificates
- Commercial, Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 3,500 total · 527 in this make and model · 2,200 as pilot in command · 71 in the last 90 days · 44 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 250° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 2 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 9,500 ft broken
- Temperature
- 59 °F, dew point 59 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BDR, 1 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.