2007 Air Turks and Caicos accident

The 2007 Air Turks and Caicos accident occurred on 23 February 2007. On that day, a Beechcraft 200C Super King Air aircraft crashed when the pilot lost control of the aircraft shortly after takeoff. The aircraft plunged into a lagoon. Toxicological examinations revealed that the pilot, who had been killed in the accident, had been under the influence of alcohol and that his sense of orientation had therefore been impaired.

Accident sequence

One of the later passengers had observed the aircraft's arrival at the airport. The pilot had reportedly parked the Beechcraft on the small apron of North Caicos airport and gone home once more to collect personal belongings. During this time the aircraft stood unattended on the apron. When the pilot returned, four of the five passengers gathered around the aircraft, and another arrived shortly afterwards. The pilot, who came from the local area and was personally known to the passengers, appeared to be in good condition. Since a large part of the traffic on the Turks and Caicos Islands was and is handled by air, the passengers were also familiar with flying as such and with the operator's aircraft. Some of them had flown more frequently on the later accident aircraft. The pilot supervised the boarding and then gave the passengers the safety briefing. He reportedly then made a mobile phone call, presumably to notify Providenciales air traffic control of the planned flight. Before taking the controls himself, the pilot told the passengers that some turbulence was to be expected. The aircraft taxied onto the runway at the eastern end for a takeoff from runway 08. The takeoff was carried out after nightfall; it was one hour after sunset and the moon had not yet risen, so that overall few visual reference points were available. Since the takeoff was carried out outside the airport's normal operating hours, no air traffic controllers were on duty any longer. The runway lighting was operated by the duty manager of the airport operator. The aircraft lifted off at 18:40. Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft was observed flying a right turn, which corresponded to the intended course towards Grand Turk, located 54 nautical miles to the southeast. While flying the turn, the aircraft reached an excessive bank angle, which caused it to begin descending. The aircraft continued to descend until it plunged into a lagoon at considerable horizontal speed. All occupants survived the impact, but some were seriously injured. The pilot died before he could receive specialist medical treatment.

Accident investigation

The aircraft had broken apart on impact; it lay almost on the top of its fuselage, with the fuselage as such having remained relatively intact. The wreckage was scattered over a length of 370 metres and along a heading of 220 degrees. The position of the wreckage indicated that the aircraft had struck in a relatively level attitude and with a moderate rate of descent but a fairly high horizontal speed. The investigators were able to determine that the aircraft was structurally intact at impact and that the pilot had it under control. An engine problem could be ruled out, since it could be established beyond doubt that the engines were running at impact. Although a slight thrust asymmetry could be detected, the accident investigators judged that it would have had no effect on the accident. None of the passengers reported problems with the aircraft, and none of them were aware of the impending impact. The circumstances of the accident suggested that the pilot had succumbed to spatial disorientation and had consequently deviated from the intended flight path, as a result of which the aircraft had entered an attitude from which it could no longer be recovered. The pilot had apparently tried to recover the aircraft, but this was not possible owing to the attitude and the low altitude. Before impact he had still been able to reduce the rate of descent and bring the aircraft into a level attitude, which had increased the occupants' chances of survival. The moonless night had played a decisive role and could have led to the spatial disorientation. Furthermore, toxicological examinations revealed that the pilot had consumed alcohol. Although his blood alcohol level was within the legally permitted limits, the influence of alcohol had made him even more susceptible to possible spatial disorientation. In addition, the flight had been operated by a single pilot, although according to legal regulations two pilots should have been present in the cockpit. The presence of a second …