# NTSB NYC08CA188: Pilatus PC-12, N522DJ, Burnsville, NC, May 22, 2008 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: May 22, 2008, 09:15 local (13:15 UTC) - Place: Burnsville, NC - Coordinates: 35.86861, -82.341667 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.8686&lon=-82.3417&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report June 30, 2008 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 68062 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=NYC08CA188 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/68062/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=68062 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/NYC08CA188 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain directional control while landing. Contributing to the accident was the gusty wind conditions. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Wind: gusts](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03034045): Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena · Contributed to outcome (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 1,199 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03034045/cases.md) - [Performance/control parameters: directional control](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Not attained/maintained (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 3,958 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062020/cases.md) - [Airport facilities/design](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03017000): Environmental issues › Operating environment · Not specified; cases with it: [All aircraft, 52 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/03017000/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230) (defining event); cases with it: [All aircraft, 4,585 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/230/sequence.md) - [Landing-landing roll: Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) ](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470); cases with it: [All aircraft, 10,189 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/470/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot was landing the Pilatus PC-12 on runway 32, a 2,900-foot-long, 50-foot-wide, asphalt runway, at an airport located in a mountainous area. After touchdown, the right wing lifted up, and the airplane became airborne again. The pilot flew back toward the center of the runway and touched down again; however, a gust of wind caused the airplane to veer to the left. The airplane's left wing was substantially damaged when it struck an embankment off the left side of the runway. The airplane subsequently came to rest on the embankment, approximately 150 feet prior to the end of the runway. The pilot reported that he did not experience any mechanical malfunctions of the airplane. Winds reported at an airport located about 39 miles northeast of the accident site, about the time of the accident, were from 300 degrees at 18 knots, gusting to 26 knots. ## Factual narrative The pilot was landing the Pilatus PC-12 on runway 32, a 2,900-foot-long, 50-foot-wide, asphalt runway, at an airport located in a mountainous area. The pilot reported experiencing updrafts and downdrafts while on final approach. After touchdown, the right wing lifted up, and the airplane became airborne again. The pilot flew back toward the center of the runway and touched down again; however, a gust of wind caused the airplane to veer to the left. The airplane's left wing was substantially damaged when it struck an embankment off the left side of the runway. The airplane subsequently came to rest on the embankment, approximately 150 feet prior to the end of the runway. The pilot reported that he did not experience any mechanical malfunctions of the airplane. He reported 3,790 hours of total flight experience, which included 1,040 hours accumulated in the same make and model as the accident airplane. Winds reported at an airport located about 39 miles northeast of the accident site, about the time of the accident, were from 300 degrees at 18 knots, gusting to 26 knots. ## Aircraft - Registration: N522DJ (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: PILATUS PC-12 - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 539 - Airframe hours: 2002 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney PT6A-67B 1200 horsepower turbo prop - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Jeffrey S, Wilson, doing business as JW Pilot Services, LLC - Registered owner: Epps Aviation / Pilatus Center South - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, May 1, 2008 - Departed: PDK, Atlanta, GA - Destination: 2NC0, Burnsville, NC - Flight plan: IFR - Airport: 2NC0, Mountain Air, runway 32, 2,900 × 50 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 45; injuries: none; flight instructor, airline transport, commercial; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine sea, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, with waivers/limitations; last flight review March 1, 2007; seat: left; flight hours: 3,790 total, 1,040 in this make and model, 3,580 as pilot in command, 150 in the last 90 days, 45 in the last 30 days, 0 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 300° at 18 knots, gusting 26 - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 55 °F, dew point 36 °F - Altimeter: 29.88 inHg - Observed at: TNB, 39 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20080522840479A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080522840479A), May 22, 2008: Pilats PC1245, Burnsville, NC, Substantial damage. (-23) Pilot attempted to land at a private mountainous airport with an elevation of 4,390 feet (mean sea level). The runway was 2900 feet long and 50 feet… ## Docket (1 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 16, 2008, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=68062. 457 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 457 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40295608&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.