Atlantic Coast Airlines Flight 6291
.jpg) An Atlantic Coast Airlines Jetstream 41 in United Express livery, sister to the accident aircraft | |
| Accident summary | |
|---|---|
| Date | January 7, 1994 |
| Summary | Pilot error |
| Site | Gahanna, Ohio 39°59′31.8″N 82°50′49.8″W / 39.992167°N 82.847167°WCoordinates: 39°59′31.8″N 82°50′49.8″W / 39.992167°N 82.847167°W |
| Passengers | 5 |
| Crew | 3 |
| Fatalities | 5 |
| Survivors | 3 |
| Aircraft type | British Aerospace Jetstream 41 |
| Operator |
Atlantic Coast Airlines DBA United Express |
| Registration | N304UE |
| Flight origin | Washington Dulles International Airport |
| Destination | Port Columbus International Airport |
Atlantic Coast Airlines Flight 6291 was a regularly scheduled United Express flight from Washington D.C. to Columbus, Ohio. It was a service operated by Atlantic Coast Airlines on behalf of United Express.
Late on the night of January 7, 1994, the British Aerospace Jetstream 41 operating as Flight 6291 stalled and crashed on approach to Port Columbus International Airport. The two pilots, the flight attendant, and two passengers died in the crash. The surviving passengers were a Taiwanese family of three.
Accident
Flight 6291 left the gate at Dulles at 21:58 for the 90-minute flight to Columbus. The crew were Captain Derrick White, 35; First Officer Anthony Samuels, 29; and Flight Attendant Manuela Walker, 58. There were five passengers on board.[1]
At 23:10, Columbus Approach Control was contacted. The captain advised the controller that the aircraft was descending through 13,200 feet for 11,000 feet. The controller assigned a 285-degree heading to intercept the ILS for runway 28L and cleared Flight 6291 to 10,000 feet. An updated weather report was at 23:15, reporting a cloud overcast 800 ft (240 m) above the ground, visibility 2.5 mi (4.0 km) miles in light snow and fog with wind 300 degrees at 4 knots. A runway 28L ILS approach clearance was given when the flight passed the SUMIE final approach fix. A clearance to land on 28L was given two minutes later.
The aircraft was descending through an altitude of 1,250 ft (380 m) when the stick shaker activated and sounded for 3 seconds. After 1.5 seconds, the stick shaker sounded again. The aircraft continued to descend below the glide slope until it collided with a stand of trees in a high nose-up attitude. It came to rest upright in a commercial building, 1.2 mi (1.9 km) short of the runway. After the impact, a fire started in or near the left engine, which spread to the rest of the aircraft. At least four of the passengers survived the crash, however, only three escaped before the aircraft was fully engulfed in flames.[2]
Investigation
The National Transportation Safety Board investigated the crash and released its report on October 6, 1994. In the report the crew and Atlantic Coast were faulted for the crash. The pilots followed a poorly planned and executed approach, improperly responded to a stall warning, and lacked experience in aircraft equipped with an electronic flight instrument system. Atlantic Coast failed to provide adequate stabilized approach criteria, suitable training simulators, and crew resource management training.[3]
References
- ↑ "3 in Family Escape". Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ "Fatal Crash blamed on pilot". Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ "NTSB Report" (PDF). Retrieved 15 May 2014.