Aero Commander 680 FL N7UP

Summary

On 22 July 2005 at about 00:07 local time, a Aero Commander 680 FL registered N7UP, operated by US Dept of Agriculture - Forest Service, was involved in an accident near Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. 3 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

22 July 2005 at 00:07

Classification

Accident

Location

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Nearest airport

North Las Vegas (VGT)

Coordinates

36.2039, -115.1881

Aircraft

Aero Commander 680 FL

Registration

N7UP

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

US Dept of Agriculture - Forest Service

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Public Use

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Las Vegas → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX05GA243

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot's excessive selection of flaps prior to takeoff, which resulted in a failure to obtain/maintain an appropriate climb airspeed, and an inadvertent stall/mush during takeoff-initial climb. A factor contributing to the accident was a high density altitude.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane descended into the ground during takeoff-initial climb on a local fire reconnaissance flight. Witnesses reported that airplane became airborne, but was not climbing, and it continued down the runway in a nose-up attitude in ground effect until impacting terrain about 600 feet southeast from the departure end of the runway. The ambient temperature was about 107 degrees Fahrenheit, and the density altitude was calculated at 5,878 feet mean sea level. On scene examination found the flaps in the 30-degree position, which also corresponded to the flap actuator position. The cockpit indicator for the flaps also showed a 30-degree extension. A subsequent bench test of the combined flap/gear selector valve was conducted. During the initial inspection, both the gear selector and the flap selector valves were bent, but otherwise operational. The "stop-pin" on the flap selector lever was missing. There was no leakage of fluid during this test. Examination of both engines revealed no abnormalities, which would prevent normal operations. The aircraft flight manual specifies that the flaps should be set at 1/4 down (10 degrees) for normal takeoff.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.