PZL-Mielec C-145A (M28-05) Skytruck – 08-0319

Incident Overview

Date: Sunday 18 December 2011

Aircraft Type: PZL-Mielec C-145A (M28-05) Skytruck

Owner/operator: United States Air Force – USAF

Registration Number: 08-0319

Location: Walan Rabat Landing Zone – ÿ Afghanistan

Phase of Flight: Landing

Status: Destroyed, written off

Casualties: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 7

Component Affected: Landing Zone Condition, Cross-Monitoring Performance, Task/Mission-in-Progress Re-planning, Landing with an Excessive Tailwind, Aircraft Engine AnomaliesLanding Zone Condition, Cross-Monitoring Performance, Task/Mission-in-Progress Re-planning, Landing with an Excessive Tailwind, Aircraft Engine Anomalies

Investigating Agency: USAF AIBUSAF AIB

Category: Accident

On December 18, 2011, an M-28 Skytruck, operated by the U.S. Air Force, experienced a significant accident during a training exercise at Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan. The aircraft and crew were deployed to a specific landing zone for a mission involving four passengers and personnel. The pilot initiated a 20-minute flight to Walan Rabat, a short takeoff and landing zone, and subsequently returned to Kandahar Air Base. The pilot’s incorrect calculation of the tailwind component led to a shallow approach and a landing with an excessive tailwind, resulting in a nose-heavy flip and collapse of the landing gear. The crew and passengers evacuated the aircraft, and subsequent investigation revealed a confluence of contributing factors, including an improperly marked landing zone, an incorrect wind component calculation, a shallow approach, and terrain issues. The investigation concluded that the landing zone condition, cross-monitoring performance, task/mission-in-progress re-planning, excessive tailwind, and aircraft engine anomalies were the primary causes of the accident.On December 18, 2011, an M-28 Skytruck, operated by the U.S. Air Force, experienced a significant accident during a training exercise at Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan. The aircraft and crew were deployed to a specific landing zone for a mission involving four passengers and personnel. The pilot initiated a 20-minute flight to Walan Rabat, a short takeoff and landing zone, and subsequently returned to Kandahar Air Base. The pilot’s incorrect calculation of the tailwind component led to a shallow approach and a landing with an excessive tailwind, resulting in a nose-heavy flip and collapse of the landing gear. The crew and passengers evacuated the aircraft, and subsequent investigation revealed a confluence of contributing factors, including an improperly marked landing zone, an incorrect wind component calculation, a shallow approach, and terrain issues. The investigation concluded that the landing zone condition, cross-monitoring performance, task/mission-in-progress re-planning, excessive tailwind, and aircraft engine anomalies were the primary causes of the accident.

Description

At 09:39 hours UTC on 18 December 2011, an M-28 Skytruck, operated by the U.S. Air Force, departed Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan on a mission to pick up four passengers at Qalat, Afghanistan, transport them to Walan Rabat short takeoff and landing zone, transport two additional personnel from Walan Rabat back to Qalat, then return to Kandahar Air Base. The aircraft and crew were assigned or attached to the 318th Special Operations Squadron, 27th Special Operations Wing at Cannon Air Force Base, New Mexico, and were deployed to the 318th Expeditionary Special Operations Squadron at Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan. After an uneventful stop at Qalat to onload four passengers and their bags, the crew flew a 20-minute leg to Walan Rabat. Surface winds at Walan Rabat were 190 degrees at 14 knots gusting to 17 knots, 30 degrees off a direct tailwind for runway 34. Because the landing zone has a three percent upslope for runway 34, and a 1,500-foot mountain exists 1,5 miles to the north, the pilot elected to land with a tailwind on runway 34, the preferred landing direction. Walan Rabat Landing Zone is a 1,756-foot long, 31-foot wide, semi-prepared dirt strip with poorly defined boundaries. The landing zone was marked with AMP-3 markings, commonly called a “box-and-one” with colored panels. The pilot consulted a wind component chart and incorrectly calculated the tailwind component, mistakenly believing it was within the allowable limit for landing the M-28. The pilot flew a shallow 2,5-3 degree approach due to the upsloping landing zone. At approximately 1,000 feet short of the landing zone, the pilot visually acquired the AMP-3 markings and landed the aircraft at 10:32 UTC. After a firmer than normal landing, the aircraft veered to the right and departed the prepared surface. The nose gear encountered uneven terrain and collapsed, causing the aircraft to flip tailover-nose. The crew and passengers then egressed the aircraft through the copilots window. There were no serious injuries to crew or passengers. CONCLUSION: The AIB president found no clear and convincing evidence of the primary cause of the accident. He determined by a preponderance of evidence that the Landing Zone Condition, CrossMonitoring Performance, Task/Mission-in-Progress Re-planning, Landing with an Excessive Tailwind, and Aircraft Engine Anomalies substantially contributed to the mishap, ultimately causing the mishap aircraft to veer off the prepared surface into rough terrain, resulting in the collapse of the nose landing gear and destruction of the aircraft.