Cessna T310Q N301JA

Summary

On 25 September 2015 at about 20:50 local time, a Cessna T310Q registered N301JA was involved in an accident near Wichita, Kansas, 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

25 September 2015 at 20:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Wichita, Kansas, United States

Nearest airport

Wichita Dwight D Eisenhower Na (ICT)

Coordinates

37.6778, -97.4600

Aircraft

Cessna T310Q

Registration

N301JA

Category

Airplane

Year built

1972

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wichita → Denver

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN15FA425

1 person died.

The separation of the attachment hardware connecting the elevator trim tab pushrod to the elevator trim actuator, which resulted in the elevator trim tab jamming in a position outside the limits of normal travel and a subsequent loss of airplane control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was departing on a personal cross-country flight in the airplane. During initial climb after takeoff, witnesses saw the airplane suddenly pitch down into a rapid descent that continued to ground impact. Postaccident examination revealed that the elevator trim pushrod was attached to the trim tab but not attached to the trim tab actuator. The bolt, nut, and cotter pin securing the elevator trim tab pushrod to the actuator were missing and not recovered. Examinations of the elevator and the pushrod revealed that the pushrod became jammed aft of the forward elevator spar creating an abnormally large trim tab up (nose down) condition. Measurements taken from an exemplar airplane of the same make and model as the accident airplane indicated that the elevator trim tab deflection with the pushrod jammed aft of the forward elevator spar would be over three times the normal maximum trailing-edge-up deflection. The airplane nose-down pitching moment at this increased deflection would create a forward force on the control yoke that a pilot would likely not be able to overcome. Following the accident, the manufacturer issued a service bulletin that required the hardware securing the elevator trim pushrod be replaced and specified the hardware to be used. Subsequently, the Federal Aviation Administration issued an airworthiness directive that required compliance with the service bulletin. Although the pilot's toxicology results were positive for ethanol in muscle tissue, when detected only in the muscle tissue, ethanol is likely from a source other than ingestion. No medications or illicit drugs were found that could pose hazards to flight safety.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.