1996 New Hampshire Learjet crash

1996 New Hampshire Learjet crash
Accident
Date 24 December 1996
Summary Controlled flight into terrain
Site Dorchester, New Hampshire
Aircraft
Aircraft type Learjet 35A
Operator Aircraft Charter Group, Inc.
Registration N388LS
Flight origin Bridgeport, Connecticut
Destination Lebanon, New Hampshire
Passengers 0
Crew 2
Fatalities 2
Survivors 0

The 1996 New Hampshire Learjet crash involved a Learjet 35A which disappeared on Christmas Eve 1996 near Dorchester, New Hampshire, in the United States. The crash led to the longest missing aircraft search in the state's history, lasting almost three years.[1] Media attention eventually resulted in Congressional legislation mandating improved Emergency locator transmitters (ELT) be installed in U.S.-registered business jets.[2]

Crash information

The aircraft involved, registration N388LS, was operated by the Aircraft Charter Group and flown by pilots Johan Schwartz and Patrick Hayes for a repositioning flight to Lebanon, New Hampshire. They left Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Bridgeport, Connecticut at 09:19am and 25 minutes later were flying the approach into Lebanon Municipal Airport. After one attempt at the ILS approach, the crew reported that they were unable to receive the localizer, when they were actually several miles off course. They presumed ground equipment failure, and the pilot told the tower that he was executing a missed approach. The aircraft's last radar contact was as it proceeded outbound, seven nautical miles (13 km) northeast of the VOR, at 4,800 ft (1,500 m).[3] As the airplane neared the inbound course to the VOR, the captain called out the outer marker. The first officer agreed, and the captain stated that they could descend to 2,300 feet. Shortly thereafter, the first officer stated that he was descending the airplane to 2,300 feet. Three seconds later, the airplane impacted trees, then terrain. The wreckage was located at an altitude of 2,300 feet, on rising mountainous terrain, 061 degrees magnetic, 12.5 nautical miles from the VOR. It was raining and foggy at the time.

Searches were mounted, unsuccessfully. The wreckage was found near Smarts Mountain almost three years later, on November 13, 1999, about 20 miles (32 km) from the airport. Debris was spread over a 150-yard (140 m) area in dense forest. The aircraft had descended into the ground 10.3 nautical miles (19.1 km) earlier than normal.

The cause of the accident was listed as:

ELT implications

The crashed aircraft had no ELT on board, as that class of aircraft when used for FAR Part 135 charter operations, was exempt from the Federal requirements for this type of beacon. As a result, Congress directed the FAA to require the installation of 406 MHz ELTs in all business jets (replacing the 121.5 MHz units installed in some).[5]

References

  1. ↑ Ferns, Jack (Summer 2006). "From the Cockpit" (PDF). The Aeronaut. New Hampshire Aviation Historical Society.
  2. ↑ Pope, Stephen (March 2004). "Cabin & Cockpit Avionics". Aviation International News. Archived from the original on 5 June 2004.
  3. ↑ Detailed NTSB report of the crash
  4. ↑ NTSB accident brief
  5. ↑ "US business jets grounded as FAA transmitter mandate takes effect". Flight Global. January 6, 2004. Retrieved October 11, 2015.

See also

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