ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 68012
Last updated: 24 May 2013
This information is added by users of ASN. ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | 23-AUG-2009 |
| Time: | 13:30 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-32R-300 Cherokee Lance |
| Operator: | Lance Group |
| Registration: | G-BTCA |
| C/n / msn: | 32R-7780381 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Airplane damage: | Written off (damaged beyond repair) |
| Location: | Alderney-The Blaye Airport, Channel Islands (ACI/EGJA) -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Jersey-States Airport, Channel Islands (JER/EGJJ) |
| Alderney-The Blaye Airport, Channel Islands (ACI/EGJA) |
On approach to Alderney, the pilot temporarily lost sight of the airfield due to a bank of sea fog rolling in from the south. Having passed through the runway centreline, the angle of bank was seen by witnesses to increase to the left, following which the aircraft descended and struck the ground, just before and slightly to the left of the runway threshold.
The pilot attributed the accident to the aircraft having been caught by a sudden gust of wind, or maybe a thermal. Warnings are published in the UK AIP and various flight guides to exercise caution due to turbulence caused by nearby cliffs.
After the aircraft had come to rest, one of the rear seat passengers called out that there was a fire on the left side of the aircraft. The pilot looked out and saw two small fires, one close to the left wing root and the other immediately outboard of the outer tank. The passengers in the rear of the aircraft exited via the rear door, which was on the left side. The front seat passenger left the aircraft via the forward door on the right hand side.
One of the rear seat occupants, who had sustained a knee injury, had to be assisted from the aircraft by the other passengers. The pilot turned off the fuel and the electrical services and, after checking that everyone else had left, collected the fire extinguisher and evacuated the aircraft.
He noted that the landing gear had collapsed and that the left wing had broken into two parts. He extinguished the fire but it reignited after the extinguisher was exhausted. The flames spread and
the aircraft was largely burnt out before the arrival of the fire and rescue services.
Registration G-BTCA cancelled by the CAA on 30/10/2009 as aircraft "destroyed"
Sources:
http://www.channelonline.tv/channelonline/DisplayArticle.asp?ID=443592
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aviation_accidents_and_incidents_in_the_Channel_Islands#2000s
http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=60&pagetype=65&appid=1&mode=reg&fullregmark=BTCA
http://www.aaib.gov.uk/cms_resources.cfm?file=/Piper%20PA-32R-300%20Cherokee%20Lance,%20G-BTCA%2002-10.pdf
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Aug-2009 21:53 | gkhoc | Added |
| 24-Aug-2009 03:47 | RobertMB | Updated |
| 24-Aug-2009 03:47 | RobertMB | Updated |
| 24-Aug-2009 05:53 | harro | Updated |
| 11-Feb-2010 01:21 | harro | Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 15-Oct-2012 17:15 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator, Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
| 15-Oct-2012 17:21 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description