- Date
- September 30, 2000, 13:35 local (20:35 UTC)
- Place
- Salem, OR
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Taxi
- Aircraft
- N8528NBoeing E75
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 6, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000930014209A
- Case key
- 50392
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 pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control upon experiencing a loss of normal braking effectiveness. Factors included a partial failure of the brake system, a tailwind, and a parked 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
The pilot reported that 45 minutes before the accident, he had washed the aircraft's engine with water and engine cleaner and that he intended to dry the engine by flying once around the local traffic pattern. The pilot stated that 'as [the] taxi progressed [the] brakes became progressively non functional and [the] aircraft began a slow turn to the left aided by a strong tailwind.' The pilot reported that attempts to stop the aircraft and to maintain directional control by braking were ineffective 'in spite of VERY strong pedal pressure' (emphasis in original). The pilot stated that power was at idle when the continuing turn ended in a collision with a parked and unoccupied Cessna airplane at about 4 MPH. The pilot stated that the aircraft's brakes became wet during taxi.
Factual narrative
On September 30, 2000, a Boeing E75, N8528N, was substantially damaged when it taxied into a parked and unoccupied Cessna aircraft, N738DT, while taxiing for takeoff at McNary Field, Salem, Oregon. The private pilot-in-command, who owned the aircraft and was its sole occupant, was not injured in the accident. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan had been filed for the intended 14 CFR 91 local personal flight.
The pilot reported that 45 minutes before the accident, he had washed the aircraft's engine with water and engine cleaner and that he intended to dry the engine by flying once around the local traffic pattern. The pilot stated that "as [the] taxi progressed [the] brakes became progressively non functional and [the] aircraft began a slow turn to the left aided by a strong tailwind." The pilot reported that attempts to stop the aircraft and to maintain directional control by braking were ineffective "in spite of VERY strong pedal pressure" (emphasis in original). The pilot stated that power was at idle when the continuing turn ended in a collision with the parked Cessna at about 4 MPH. The pilot stated that the aircraft's brakes became wet during taxi. Documentation furnished by the pilot indicated that the aircraft's last annual inspection signoff was on March 15, 2000.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8528N
- Reported as
- Boeing E75
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 75-5045
- Engine
- Lycoming R-680, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- John M. Currie
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Aerobatic
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 15, 2000 · 47 hours before
- Departed
- SLE
- Airport
- SLE · Mcnary Field
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
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 941 total · 532 in this make and model · 31 in the last 90 days · 11 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 12 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 64 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.