N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

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robbreid
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N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by robbreid »

No injuries as small plane touches down in Wilmington without landing gear

By David Reynolds
Staff Writer

Published: Sunday, January 4, 2009 at 8:58 p.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, January 4, 2009 at 9:21 p.m.

A small jet with no fuel made an emergency landing at Wilmington International Airport ILM early Sunday, and the seven people onboard escaped without injuries, officials said.

The plane landed without its landing gear and slid along the runway before coming to rest in the grass at the end of the air strip, said Julie Wilsey, the airport’s deputy director.

“It’s amazing,” she said. “The pilots did a fantastic job of landing the aircraft under the conditions. It was very very foggy.”

The Cessna Citation landed at 2:20 a.m. after four failed attempts to land in thick fog, Wilsey said. The plane, which is a twin-engine jet, ran out of fuel during flight because of strong-winds and the added flight time taken during the repeated passes over the airport, she said.

In addition to two pilots, the plane carried a family of four and their nanny. The passengers were headed home to New York from a Christmas vacation in the Caribbean. The family hired the plane to fly from the Dominican Republic to Wilmington where they intended to pass through U.S. Customs before continuing on to an airport in Teterboro, NJ.

Since Wilmington International Airport’s air traffic control isn’t staffed in the early morning hours, the pilots communicated with officials in Washington, D.C. during the landing. Wilsey said she did not know the family’s full name. She wasn’t certain why the landing gear wasn’t working.

Emergency crews with the airport and the Wrightsboro Volunteer Fire Department were on hand for the landing.

Airport officials notified the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board of the incident, Wilsey said. Since no one was injured, federal investigators weren’t dispatched and the airport moved the plane from the landing site. The runway reopened before noon. In the interim, the airport stayed open by using it’s other runway.

Several hours after the landing, the parents and their two children boarded a U.S. Airways flight to LaGuardia Airport in New York City, Wilsey said.

“It’s really remarkable,” she said. “Everybody did everything right last night.”

IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 815MA Make/Model: C550 Description: 550, S550, 552 Citation 2/S2/Bravo (T-47
Date: 01/04/2009 Time: 0715

Event Type: Incident Highest Injury: None Mid Air: N Missing: N
Damage: Unknown

LOCATION
City: WILMINGTON State: NC Country: US

DESCRIPTION
AIRCRAFT LANDED GEAR UP AND SLID OFF THE RUNWAY INTO THE GRASS, WILMINGTON,
NC

INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 0
# Crew: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Pass: 7 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:

WEATHER: VMC

OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase: Landing Operation: OTHER


FAA FSDO: GREENSBORO, NC (SO05) Entry date: 01/05/2009
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Donald
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by Donald »

robbreid wrote: The Cessna Citation landed at 2:20 a.m. after four failed attempts to land in thick fog, Wilsey said. The plane, which is a twin-engine jet, ran out of fuel during flight because of strong-winds and the added flight time taken during the repeated passes over the airport, she said.
:shock:

I gotta say, I hope there is more to this story.
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crazy_aviator
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by crazy_aviator »

ALL of a sudden, the headwinds miraculously come out of nowhere AND fog suddenly materialized EVERY time we were on approach!!! Its incredible how WELL the great pilots did to save ALL those lives !!! :D :lol:
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jetboy1975
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by jetboy1975 »

Wow the pilots did everything right and no one got hurt. I guess these peolpe have never heard of an alternate....before running out of fuel. It should have never happened.
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invertedattitude
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by invertedattitude »

Another high level road block written off... darn
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Conquest Driver
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by Conquest Driver »

I'm wondering if customs problems might have played any part in their apparent fixation on getting in at Wilmington?
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baron_dude
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by baron_dude »

Conquest Driver wrote:I'm wondering if customs problems might have played any part in their apparent fixation on getting in at Wilmington?
This is actually an interesting topic. I fly a small twin out of an uncontrolled airport, near Hamilton, on a regular basis and when the weather is bad we have to divert to Hamilton, which is a 5 minute trip. The other pilot I work with had his corperate permit revoked because he diverted to Hamilton with out proper notice to CANPASS. I have also been told off for doing the same thing. Now they did give him his permit back but, this shouldn't even be a concern on a pilots mind. Obviously I will do whatever is safer but Customs, especially in the states, has so much power that I wouldn't be surprised that it could affect someones decision making....especially on the east coast where there are airports every 50 miles...

Has anyone else had this sort of trouble with CANPASS or US CBP?
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Truckpilot
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by Truckpilot »

I wonder if the folks at CANPASS know what a diversion due to...well..., anything... is all about...?

Checklist Amendment...

after, "Fire Bottle Discharge"
insert, "Call CANPASS"...
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scgyob
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Re: N815MA Citation 550 lands with no fuel, no landing gear!!!

Post by scgyob »

Conquest Driver wrote:I'm wondering if customs problems might have played any part in their apparent fixation on getting in at Wilmington?
If as a pilot you're more concern about customs than fuel, it's time to question yourself ...

He crash the plane but clear customs !!!

Congrats :)
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