Bornhofen TWINJET 1500 N750TJ

Summary

On 24 January 2003 at about 22:00 local time, a Bornhofen TWINJET 1500 registered N750TJ was involved in an accident near Melbourne, Florida, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

24 January 2003 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Melbourne, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Melbourne Regional (MLB)

Coordinates

28.1025, -80.6450

Aircraft

Bornhofen TWINJET 1500

Registration

N750TJ

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Flight Test

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Melbourne → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA03LA045

1 person died.

the pilot-in-command failed to obtain sufficient altitude to clear obstacles at the approach end of the airport which resulted in an in-flight collision with trees.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported a problem with the landing gear after takeoff, and had asked the tower to check the position of the landing gear. On the first pass the gear was partially extended, on the second pass the gear appeared to be fully retracted. The pilot informed the tower that he would make an intentional gear-up landing between the taxiway and the runway to the grass. The airplane was observed at an altitude below the height of the control tower. All the witnesses interviewed agreed that the aircraft was never higher than 200 to 300 feet, more like tree top level, and was pitching and banking very steeply in turns. On the final circuit the pilot reported that he was having trim problems, and that he would now land on runway 9L. As the aircraft approached the base leg to final turn the tower operator momentarily diverted his attention away from the aircraft. When he looked up the aircraft was gone and smoke was rising from the crash site. Examination of the wreckage after the crash revealed no discrepancies. A witness revealed that the pilot was reported to have been sick with flu like ailments for at least a week prior to the accident. The day prior to the accident the pilot was scheduled to fly the aircraft for testing, and appeared so ill that he was instructed to go home. Toxicological tests on the pilot-in-command, revealed that Salicylate [and] Pseudoephedrine were detected in Urine, "61.54 (ug/ml, ug/g).

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.