Bombardier DHC-8-402 N200WQ

Summary

On 13 February 2009 at about 01:17 local time, a Bombardier DHC-8-402 registered N200WQ, operated by Colgan Air Inc, was involved in an accident near Clarence Center, New York, United States. 50 people were on board and 49 died. One person on the ground also died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 February 2009 at 01:17

Classification

Accident

Location

Clarence Center, New York, United States

Nearest airport

Buffalo-Niagara International (BUF)

Coordinates

43.0111, -78.6347

Aircraft

Bombardier DHC-8-402

Registration

N200WQ

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Colgan Air Inc

Operating rule

Part 121: Air Carrier

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Newark → Buffalo

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

DCA09MA027

49 people died, including 1 on the ground.

The captain’s inappropriate response to the activation of the stick shaker, which led to an aerodynamic stall from which the airplane did not recover. Contributing to the accident were (1) the flight crew's failure to monitor airspeed in relation to the rising position of the low-speed cue, (2) the flight crew failure to adhere to sterile cockpit procedures, (3) the captain’s failure to effectively manage the flight, and (4) Colgan Air’s inadequate procedures for airspeed selection and management during approaches in icing conditions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The Safety Board’s full report is available at http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/A_Acc1.htm. The Aircraft Accident Report number is NTSB/AAR-10/01. On February 12, 2009, about 2217 eastern standard time, a Colgan Air, Inc., Bombardier DHC-8-400, N200WQ, operating as Continental Connection flight 3407, was on an instrument approach to Buffalo-Niagara International Airport, Buffalo, New York, when it crashed into a residence in Clarence Center, New York, about 5 nautical miles northeast of the airport. The 2 pilots, 2 flight attendants, and 45 passengers aboard the airplane were killed, one person on the ground was killed, and the airplane was destroyed by impact forces and a postcrash fire. The flight was operating under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 121. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.