BROOMFIELD, CO, USA
N388SP
Cessna 340
At the completion of an on-demand air taxi flight carrying four passengers, a ILS approach was conducted followed by a hard landing which damaged the landing gear, both wings, and the tips of the left propeller blades. Lighting conditions were dark night. Weather during the approach/landing was 200-foot obscuration, 1/2-mile visibility in freezing drizzle and mist. The wind was from 360 degrees magnetic heading at 10 knots and the altimeter was 30.03 inches of mercury. The recorded temperature and dew point were both 34 degrees Fahrenheit.
On September 22, 2000, at 2200 mountain daylight time, a Cessna 340, N388SP, operated by Star West Aviation, sustained substantial damage when it was involved in a hard landing at Jefferson County Airport, Broomfield, Colorado. The commercial pilot and the four passengers were not injured. The flight was an on-demand air taxi flight operating under Title 14 CFR Part 135 and an IFR flight plan was filed. Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed for this passenger flight, which originated from Rock Springs, Wyoming, at 2030. According to the pilot, at the conclusion of an instrument landing system approach, he made a hard landing. The left main tire was blown, the main struts were flat, the upper and lower skin around both wing roots was rippled, and the tips of the left propeller blades were damaged. The damage was discovered during post flight inspection after the aircraft was parked on the ramp. Jefferson County Airport recorded weather at the time of the accident was 200-foot sky obscured, visibility 1/2 mile with freezing drizzle and mist. The wind was from 360 degrees magnetic heading at 10 knots and the altimeter was 30.03 inches of mercury. The recorded temperature and dew point were both 34 degrees Fahrenheit.
The pilot landing the aircraft hard exceeding the design stress limits. Factors were: Low ceiling, freezing rain, dark night, excessive descent rate, and improper glide path.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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