- Date
- November 20, 1992, 18:40 local (Nov 21, 1992, 01:40 UTC)
- Place
- Broomfield, CO
- Injuries
- 4 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N473FWMitsubishi MU-2B-25
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report September 14, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19921120047599A
- Case key
- 18263
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
A failure by FBO personnel to properly connect the nose wheel torque link after towing the aircraft.
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
In preparation for a cross country flight with takeoff occurring during a snow storm, the aircraft was loaded in the hangar and towed out by FBO personnel. Following the tow, the torque link was not properly connected and separated during the takeoff run. Due to a loss of nose wheel steering, the takeoff was aborted. The aircraft departed the side of the runway during the abort and the nose wheel was sheared off causing damage to both engines, wings, the fuselage, and landing gear.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N473FW
- Reported as
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-25
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 269
- Airframe hours
- 3,406
- Engine
- Garrett TPE331-6, 725 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Wayne C. Muhler, doing business as Muhl Air
- Registered owner
- Wayne C. Muhler
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · September 23, 1991 · 60 hours before
- Departed
- BJC
- Destination
- LAS · Las Vegas, NV
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- BJC · Jefferson County, runway 29, 9,000 × 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
- 44
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 13,753 total · 4,200 in this make and model · 1,346 as pilot in command · 59 in the last 90 days · 31 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 10° at 12 knots
- Temperature
- 32 °F, dew point 19 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- BJC, 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.