Embraer 170 N650RW

Summary

On 3 October 2005 at about 15:00 local time, a Embraer 170 registered N650RW was involved in an accident near Dulles, Virginia, United States. 45 people were on board and one was seriously injured. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

3 October 2005 at 15:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Dulles, Virginia, United States

Nearest airport

Dulles International Airport (IAD)

Coordinates

38.9400, -77.4533

Aircraft

Embraer 170

Registration

N650RW

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 121: Air Carrier

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Montreal → Dulles

Aircraft damage

Not recorded

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC06LA002

1 person was seriously injured.

The flight crew's excessive maneuver in response to a traffic alert during the landing approach.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

As the airplane approached the destination airport in level flight at 3,000 feet, air traffic control issued a traffic advisory and a turn away from approaching traffic, which was 500 feet below. About the same time, the airplane's traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS) alerted the crew to the traffic, and issued a resolution advisory (RA) to climb the airplane. The first officer climbed the airplane to 3,500 feet, and then descended the airplane back to 3,000 feet once the RA was complied with. During the climb and subsequent descent maneuver, a cabin attendant sustained a serious injury. Data downloaded from the flight data recorder (FDR) revealed that the flight crew responded with a pitch-up attitude of 14 degrees, with a sustained g-load of 2 g's. According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Advisory Circular 120-55b, the recommended initial response was no greater than 7 degrees vertical pitch, with a resultant g-load of approximately 0.35 g's. It further advised, "The [pilot not flying] should advise the [pilot flying] on the progress of achieving the vertical rates commanded by TCAS." The manufacturer's airplane operator's manual stated that compliance with pitch guidance provided on the primary flight display should require no more than a 0.75g to 1.25g maneuver (+-0.25g).

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.