- Date
- December 13, 2022, 19:00, time zone not recorded
- Place
- Liberal, KS · KLBL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Prior to flight
- Aircraft
- N253SBCessna 441
- Defining event
- Prior to flight: Ground collision
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- Case key
- 106480
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 inadequate preflight inspection, failure to set the parking brake, and his decision to exit the airplane with engines running to remove a wheel chock, resulting in the airplane’s unintended movement and subsequent collision with a hangar.
Findings · 4
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 of the multiengine airplane reported that, he had preflighted the airplane about 2 hours before his intended departure and asked ground crew to reposition the airplane. When the pilot was ready for departure, he reported that he did not do another preflight, but only walked around the nose of the airplane to get to the entrance door. After he started both engines, the airplane would not taxi forward. The pilot reported that he thought that he set the brakes, reduced both engines to an idle power setting, and exited the airplane. The pilot observed a chock on the airplane’s nosewheel, and after he removed the chock, the airplane began to move forward. He attempted to reboard the unoccupied airplane, however, was unable to and the airplane subsequently collided with a hangar. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N253SB
- Reported as
- Cessna 441
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 4410258
- Built
- 1982
- Engines
- Garrett TPE331-ION, 635 horsepower, turbo propGarrett TPE331-ION, 635 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Positioning · Part 91
- Operator
- Lyddon Aero Center, Inc., doing business as Lyddon Aero Center, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Sierra Bravo Partnership
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- KLBL · Liberal, KS
- Destination
- KLBB · Lubbock, TX
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- KLBL · Liberal Mid-America Regional
- Equipment
- Stall warning system, ADS-B, Auto-pilot, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Onboard weather, Electronic multifunction display, Electronic primary flight display
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
- 73
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- January 7, 2022
- Seat
- None
- Restraint
- None
- Flight hours
- 21,500 total · 500 in this make and model · 150 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 330° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 28 °F, dew point 18 °F
- Altimeter
- 2968.00 inHg
- Observed at
- KLBL
- METAR
- KLBL 140056Z AUTO 33010KT 10SM CLR M02/M08 A2968
Docket · 4
The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 2, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 9.6 MB in all.