Cessna 501 N501DR

Summary

On 12 February 2006 at about 02:15 local time, a Cessna 501 registered N501DR, operated by David Roeberg, was involved in an accident near Fort Pierce, Florida, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 February 2006 at 02:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Fort Pierce, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

St. Lucie County International (FPR)

Coordinates

27.4950, -80.3683

Aircraft

Cessna 501

Registration

N501DR

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

David Roeberg

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Columbia → Fort Pierce

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

MIA06LA052

Nobody was injured.

mechanical binding of the normal brake system, rendering directional control impossible. Contributing factors were the improper overhaul, inadequate quality control procedures by the overhaul facility, and the rough terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the landing roll, the pilot was unable to maintain directional control and the airplane swerved side-to side before going off the right side of the runway. The pilot said overhauled brake assemblies had been installed before the accident. He complained that the brakes felt "spongy" and the pedals went "almost to the floor, requiring two or three additional pumps for a hard pedal." He was told that this was "normal" since the airplane was not equipped with power brakes or anti-skid. The brakes were removed and sent to the overhaul facility. They found that both brake assemblies each had one return mechanism binding. The return mechanism had a self adjusting friction bushing meant to slip along the return pin at a predetermined spring pressure. As pressure was applied to the brake, the pressure plate extended toward the number one rotor, pulling the return pins through the swage and tube assemblies and compressing the return springs. Although the swage should move through the tube, one swage on each brake was not moving freely. The brake travel went further than normal because "normal travel" was never set.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.