A Cape Air 402 Dead Sticks it in to APF

[Rizer]

Dual engine failure at night with 6 passengers onboard.


Cape Air plane makes emergency landing in Fla.

By Patrick Cassidy
pcassidy@capecodonline.com
January 23, 2009

A Cape Air plane made an emergency landing in Naples, Fla., last night after it lost both engines, according to a Federal Aviation Administration official.

Flight 9399 was en route from Key West to Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers when it reported the loss of its engines and was diverted to Naples Municipal Airport on Florida’s west coast, said FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen.
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The plane glided to a safe landing. There were seven people onboard the Cessna 402C, Bergen said. Nobody was injured and there was no other damage to the plane, she said.

Cape Air flies the nine-passenger Cessna 402C planes out of several locations around the country, including between Cape Cod, the Islands and Boston. The company’s planes fly daily between Key West and Fort Myers in Florida. They also have flights out of Guam and nearby Pacific islands.

Cape Air spokeswoman Michelle Haynes said she could not comment on the cause until she received official information but that the company lauded the performance of the pilot.

The pilot, a veteran aviator of more than 30 years experience including time flying with Nantucket Airlines, Cape Air’s sister airline, had difficulty with the plane and turned it around during the flight, Haynes said. The six passengers on board were accommodated on buses as necessary, she said.

The FAA is investigating the incident and the cause behind the engines shutting down has not been determined, Bergen said.

In June 2007 Cape Air grounded its fleet of Cessnas after two engine failures in May and the discovery of abnormal wearing on engine parts. The parts were replaced in 49 of the planes but no problems were found in the company’s Florida-based aircraft.

In September a Cape Air plane crashed in West Tisbury killing the pilot, who was the only occupant of the plane. The FAA’s preliminary report on the crash found no catastrophic failure of the engines and propellers of that plane.

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090123/NEWS11/90123021

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28803591/

 

[HeyEng]

Good job!!!

I have always wondered how a single pilot would deal with the ensuing panic from the PAX after both engines shut down. I envision a very strearn "SHUT UP!!! Do you want to live?!?". I understand that the pilot was probably very cool under that amount pressure, but I guarantee there were some hollering from the PAX that could be *just a little* distracting!

 

[Murdoughnut]

From what I've heard from others, apparently most passengers get really quiet during an emergency.

 

[drhunterr]

Hard to say what I would have done as a passenger I guess, but hopefully the thought that "the guy up front reaaalllllyyy needs to focus and maybe I shouldn't be annoying" would cross my brain. good job getting everyone down in once piece.

come on! you know them there lit'l ar-plane a'int safe! :buck:

 

[mattp1803]

Unbelievable!! Thank goodness he executed a safe landing! Engine problems at night are not fun.

 

[Florida_Flyer]

Dead stikin' a 402, awesome! To think I've spent the last couple of years bragging about my single engine landing in one; makes me feel almost humble now! Unless he was dumb enough to run out of gas of course.

 

[dvtpilot]

Dead stikin' a 402, awesome! To think I've spent the last couple of years bragging about my single engine landing in one; makes me feel almost humble now! Unless he was dumb enough to run out of gas of course.

You know, I was thinking to myself how someone could have such bad luck as to lose BOTH engines at night due to something mechanical......the thought of no more gas never even crossed my mind! Thanks for reminding me of the obvious! (seriously, no sarcasm intended)

 

[The Gardener]

more that likely fuel contamination, not fuel starvation.

 

[Itchy]

Did even better (theoretically) than 'Ol Sully!

Nice job whoever you are!

 

[EALchild]

Did even better (theoretically) than 'Ol Sully!

Nice job whoever you are!

You must be out of your mind to compare the two events. A cessna glides much further at cruise than an airbus after departure. Lest comparing a plane that is capable of landing in a parking lot to a water ditching. Think before you post your thoughts or at least gain some more experience.

 

[Boris Badenov]

Think before you post your thoughts or at least gain some more experience.

You must have a lot of experience in a 402 if you can land it in a parking lot.

 

[wrxpilot]

You must be out of your mind to compare the two events. A cessna glides much further at cruise than an airbus after departure. Lest comparing a plane that is capable of landing in a parking lot to a water ditching. Think before you post your thoughts or at least gain some more experience.

I seriously doubt an old 402 has a better glide ratio than a slippery jet. Look at a table comparing glide ratios sometime, you'll be surprised by what you see.

That said, the Cape air bird was probably much higher than the US Air crew, and probably had a fairly straight shot at APF.

 

[Grabo172]

You must be out of your mind to compare the two events. A cessna glides much further at cruise than an airbus after departure. Lest comparing a plane that is capable of landing in a parking lot to a water ditching. Think before you post your thoughts or at least gain some more experience.

Welcome to the forums... What is your experience?

Not to sound mean... just wondering why you are jumping all over someone?

Can't we all just get along?

 

[Polar742]

Welcome to the forums... What is your experience?

<LI class=profilefield_category>About EALchild <DL class="list_no_decoration profilefield_list"><DT class=shade>Location <DD>Austin <DT class=shade>Ratings <DD>DA-20
B-747-400 <DT class=shade>Flight Time <DD>8500 <DT class=shade>Industry Sector <DD>cargo <DT class=shade>Aircraft Type <DD>747-400

</DD></DL>

 

[Itchy]

You must be out of your mind to compare the two events. A cessna glides much further at cruise than an airbus after departure. Lest comparing a plane that is capable of landing in a parking lot to a water ditching. Think before you post your thoughts or at least gain some more experience.

Relax. It was a tongue in cheek sort of thing.
I wont retract what I said though, it was a remarkable achievement by both crews. They both came out optimally.

 

[SteveC]

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090127/NEWS/901270312/-1/NEWSMAP

A Cape Air plane that made an emergency landing in Naples, Fla., Thursday may have run out of gas because of a mechanical malfunction between one of its fuel tanks and its two engines, according to preliminary findings from the National Transportation Safety Board.

A valve that supplies gas from the plane's left tank to its left engine was stuck so both of the aircraft's engines may have drawn all of the fuel from the right tank, NTSB senior air safety investigator Tim Monville said yesterday.

< snip >

Cape Air mechanics and investigators replicated the valve problem and continued to investigate the incident over the weekend, Monville said.

"We proved repeatedly that the left tank was not providing fuel to the left engine," he said.

Although there were 12 gallons of gas in the right tank, Cape Air personnel suspected the gas had transferred from the right tank overnight after the plane landed, Monville said. There were 275 pounds of gas in the left tank, he said.

Aircraft fuel is measured by both volume and weight.

After the valve was lubricated both engines started and ran normally, Monville said. The plane was flown to Fort Myers and the NTSB asked that the suspect parts be removed and preserved, he said.

"It reflects very well on the training and the experience level of the pilot," Cape Air CEO Dan Wolf said yesterday.

The pilot would have been able to bypass the stuck valve to draw fuel from the full tank but seeing the nearby airport decided to land the plane quickly and troubleshoot on the ground, Wolf said.

With more than 25 years flying Cessnas the pilot, who Wolf declined to name, did the "smart and prudent thing," Wolf said.

The pilot told investigators that he had noticed a decrease in fuel in the right engine but believed it was a problem with the instruments that read fuel levels, Monville said.

A preliminary report should be complete within the next week and a final report within the next six months, the investigator said.

 

[Rizer]

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090127/NEWS/901270312/-1/NEWSMAP

Thanks for the update Steve.