Incident Overview

Date: Tuesday 13 January 1998
Aircraft Type: Learjet 25B
Owner/operator: American Corporate Aviation
Registration Number: N627WS
Location: 3,2 km E of Houston-George Bush Intercontinental Airport, TX (IAH) – ÿ United States of America
Phase of Flight: Approach
Status: Destroyed, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Component Affected: Navigation ReceiverNavigation Receiver
Investigating Agency: NTSBNTSB
Category: Accident
During a second runway 26 approach, the aircraft descended below the glideslope and struck trees, resulting in a crash. An amplifier failure in the navigation receiver caused a false full fly-down indication to the first officer. The flight crew?s descent, coupled with the captain?s incorrect transfer of control to the first officer, and the failure to follow company coordination procedures, contributed to the accident. The lack of an airworthy airplane and ground proximity warning system also played a role.During a second runway 26 approach, the aircraft descended below the glideslope and struck trees, resulting in a crash. An amplifier failure in the navigation receiver caused a false full fly-down indication to the first officer. The flight crew?s descent, coupled with the captain?s incorrect transfer of control to the first officer, and the failure to follow company coordination procedures, contributed to the accident. The lack of an airworthy airplane and ground proximity warning system also played a role.

Description

Descended below the glideslope during the second runway 26 approach, struck trees and crashed. The first officer’s instruments were displaying a false full fly-down glideslope indication because of a failed amplifier in the navigation receiver. PROBABLE CAUSE: “The flight crew’s continued descent of the airplane below the glideslope and through the published decision height without visual contact with the runway environment. Also, when the captain encountered difficulty tracking the localizer course, his improper decision to continue the approach by transferring control to the first officer instead of executing a missed approach contributed to the cause. In addition, the following were factors to the accident: (1) American Corporate Aviation’s failure to provide an airworthy airplane to the flight crew following maintenance, resulting in a false glideslope indication to the first officer; (2) the flight crew’s failure to follow company crew coordination procedures, which called for approach briefings and altitude callouts; and (3) the lack of an FAA requirement for a ground proximity warning system on the airplane. “

Primary Cause

Amplifier failure in the navigation receiver.Amplifier failure in the navigation receiver.

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