Mercer Airlines Flight 901

Mercer Airlines Flight 901 was a positioning flight of Mercer Airlines from Hollywood Burbank Airport to Ontario International Airport. A serious accident occurred on the flight when an engine tore away during take-off and, after a further engine failure, the pilots did not manage to reach Van Nuys Airport. During an emergency landing on a golf course, the aircraft collided with a concrete foundation and a trailer. Of the six occupants, three were killed.

Accident sequence

During the acceleration the flight engineer said: “Look at the warning light on engine No. 3.” The other crew members did not respond to the remark. The aircraft accelerated normally to V1 and V2, rotated and lifted off without problems. Shortly after the captain had the landing gear and flaps retracted, a loud bang was heard and the flight engineer reported the failure of engine No. 3. The first propeller blade of engine No. 3 had come loose, creating an imbalance that almost instantly caused the engine to tear away from the aircraft. The propeller blade penetrated the lower fuselage and the lower inboard side of engine No. 2. In penetrating the fuselage, pneumatic, hydraulic and emergency brake lines were damaged, as well as the electrical wiring of the propeller controls and of some engine instruments.

The first officer informed the captain of the engine failure. The aircraft continued to climb and the pilots initiated a right turn. An emergency was declared, and the crew requested landing clearance for runway 07, which was granted. Debris was discovered at the intersection of runways 07/25 and 15/23, but the pilot decided to continue the approach. The aircraft touched down near the end of runway 07. The captain called for the flaps to be retracted and for the propellers to be set to reverse thrust. The engine noise became louder, and the first officer told the captain that the propellers were not going into reverse and that he should apply the brakes. As the engine noise subsided, the captain replied that nothing was happening. Maximum power was applied, and the aircraft lifted off again and cleared the blast fence at the end of the runway by about 9 metres.

At 10:39:35 the crew reported to Hollywood-Burbank tower that the brakes had failed and that they would head for Van Nuys Airport (VNY). The crew noticed that the oil pressure of engine No. 2 was low and that there was no BMEP indication. Attempts to feather propeller No. 2 failed, and engine No. 2 stopped, with the propeller blades at a positive, low blade angle. Van Nuys gave landing clearance for runway 16, but the crew replied that they would not make it and requested clearance to land on runway 34. At 10:43:22 the Van Nuys controller gave landing clearance for runway 34L. On the approach to the airport the aircraft lost altitude and speed. The crew realised that they would not reach the runway. The throttles were pulled back, and an emergency landing was attempted on the Woodley Municipal Golf Course, about 1.6 km south of Van Nuys Airport. The aircraft touched down on the main landing gear and bounced three times. The nose of the aircraft struck a 61 cm high concrete foundation of a building under construction. The aircraft struck a trailer parked nearby.

A few minutes after the accident the fire brigade arrived and began cutting open the cockpit with angle grinders in order to recover the crew members from the completely deformed cockpit. The aircraft then caught fire, about 20 minutes after the accident. Three crew members were killed, three other occupants were injured.