The aircraft was on a local flight involving a parachute jumping activity. In addition to the pilot, there were 12 parachutists and an observer on board. The pilot initiated his takeoff on runway 18. A witness stated that shortly after takeoff, the engine power was reduced to climb power, followed by the gear retraction. Reportedly, the aircraft had climbed to about 150 ft agl when the nose pitched up, th plane rolled to the left and then it crashed in a steep left bank, nose down attitude. An investigation revealed that the aircraft was loaded well beyond its maximum gross weight and aft cg limits. The amount of fuel on board was not verified, but even with no fuel, the plane would have been about 580 lbs over the maximum limit. With 100 gallons, the estimated gross weight would have been about 9939 lbs with the cg at about 121 inches. The maximum certificated gross weight was 8750 lbs with an aft cg limit of 117.6 inches. Extensive ground fire damage, but no preimpact, mechanical discrepancies evident.
Category: 1982
Jumper’s parachute open prematurely pulling jumper into tail section bending horizontal stabilizer which in turn jammed the rudder. Plt could not flare acft during subsequent landing collapsing the main gear.
The pilot reported that he had 20 gal of fuel on board when he took off. He climbed to 10,000 ft for a parachute jump, then returned to the airport with an estimated 10 gal of fuel. During a downwind landing, he elected to go around. He said the engine lost power as he was climbing through about 75 ft agl. A forced landing was made in a small pasture. Initially, the mishap was reported as an incident. Before the aircraft was examined, wings had been removed and the aircraft and wings had been transported from the accident site. When examined, both wing tanks were empty, except a small amount of 100 low lead (blue) fuel was found in the right wing tank. Fluid taken from the lines to the left wing tanks had the appearance of automotive fuel. The owner reported that automotive fuel had previously been used. No fuel was found in the carburetor.
Prior to flt the spark plugs on both engs were replaced due to minor eng vibration & the landing gear retract system wiring repaired due to the gear not retracting electrically on a prior occasion. After takeoff the gear would not retract electrically & the passenger had to crank up the gear manually. After the parachute jump the plt shut down the left eng to isolate the vibration. He then started the left eng & feathered the right eng. Unable to unfeather the righteng he elected to land with full flaps & gear down after a straight-in approach. As he approached the threshold a c-150 taxied onto the rwy. The plt executed a go-around while trying to retract the flaps & gear electrically without results.The pax was attempting to retract the gear manually when the acft struck a tree. The plt stated he did not make his landing intentions known on unicom during the approach. No pre-impact descrepancies were found to preclude normal prop operation. Normal elect power is halved with one generation inoperative.
Witnesses observed the takeoff roll as being unusually long. The acft never climbed much above 100-200 ft agl, & struck trees 1/2 mi off the end of the rwy. The flaps were observed up during takeoff. Normal takeoff flap setting used by the club for carrying jumpers is 10 deg. The acft was 166 pounds over max gross weight & the cg was beyond the aft limit. The density altitude was approximately 2,000 ft. The plt had never flown a c-182 or a constant speed propeller equipped acft prior to his checkout with the parachute club the week before the accident. The day of the accident was the first time he had carried any jumpers. The plt had agreed to fly for the club for no compensation other than to build flt time.
After a normal skydiver drop, the pilot spiraled down for a normal landing on a 2000 ft gravel runway with a powerline at the approach end. The wind was reported as variable at 5 kts. The pilot reported that during the landing, the aircraft touched down on the first 1/3 of the runway and the brakes were applied. Reportedly, the braking action was marginal and the aircraft ran off the end of the runway. The aircraft then struck a ditch and the nose gear failed. Prior to the accident, the pilot was warned that the aircraft brakes were marginal. The density altitude was about 2400 ft.
The pilot had flown from eutaw to seale, al to participate in a parachute activity. Although the plane was equipped for parachuting, it was not used for that purpose on that trip. Before returning to eutaw, the pilot used a dipstick to check the fuel and estimated he had a sufficient amount remaining for the 1.1 hr return flight. He did not check the weather or refuel the aircraft. En route, he encountered clouds, darkness, and heavy rain showers. While deviating from his planned course, he lost track of his position and the fuel supply became low. He diverted to tuscaloosa, al, but ran out of fuel during his approach. The plane struck trees about 1/2 mile from the runway during a forced landing. No seat or seat belt was available for the passenger; however, the passenger received only minor injuries.
After returning from a parachute jumping flight, the pilot elected to land on the 1800 ft grass runway. A 3000 ft asphalt runway was available, but he had been using the grass runway to avoid wear on the tires. There was a 30 ft powerline at the approach end of the grass runway and the sod was wet. The pilot reported that there was light rain and the wind was calm. Reportedly, the plane touched down about 200 ft from the approach end, but the pilot was unable to stop on the runway. The aircraft continued off the end and collided with brush and trees. The computed landing distance over a 50 ft obstacle on a hard runway was about 1500 ft.
The pilot started a downwind takeoff on runway 15 with 9 parachutists on board. The runway was unidirectional requiring takeoffs on runway 15 which sloped downhill. After beginning the takeoff roll, the pilot had difficulity in maintaining directional control and initiated abort procedures. Reportedly, the aircraft continued to veer to the right in spite of the use of hard left rudder and braking action. As the aircraft decelerated, it departed the right side of the runway, struck 3 fence posts, and collided with a parked stinson, n368c. The pilot reported that the parachutist occupying the copilot’s seat stated that he had placed his feet behind the rudder pedals shortly before takeoff.
After completing the drop on a skydiving flight, the engine lost power during a power-off descent. The pilot reported that the carburetor heat was not used during the descent prior to the loss of power. However, the probability of weather conditions for carburetor ice was not verified. The aircraft struck a fence during an off-airport landing, before reaching the runway. The pilot reported that he took off with 10 gallons of fuel on board. The plane crashed about 15 minutes after takeoff. An examination of the engine revealed no malfunction or failure prior to the accident.
The pilot reported landing on a soft, slick runway at dusk after returning from a parachute jumping mission. The aircraft was landed off of the center of the runway and veered left in soft terrain. The nosewheel sank in mud as the plane crossed a shallow ditch and flipped over.
A climb was made to 10,000 ft on a skydiving flight. The pilot reported that after descending to 2000 ft, the engine began to lose power and run rough. He elected to make an off-airport landing in a field. Near the end of the landing roll, the nose gear sank into soft terrain, and the aircraft flipped over.