Hamburger Flugzeugbau (Hfb) HFB 320 Hansa accident near Chesterfield, MO
On December 1, 2004, a Hamburger Flugzeugbau (Hfb) HFB 320 Hansa (airplane) was involved in an accident near Chesterfield, MO. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- December 1, 2004
- Place
- Chesterfield, MO
- Aircraft
- Hamburger Flugzeugbau (Hfb) HFB 320 Hansa · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 38.664°N, 90.703°W
- NTSB ID
- 20041208X01952
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On November 30, 2004, at 1956 central standard time, a Hamburger Flugzeugbau, HFB Hansa 320, N604GA, operated by Grand Aire Express, was destroyed when it impacted the Missouri River near Chesterfield, Missouri, soon after departure from runway 26L (7,485 feet by 150 feet, concrete) at the Spirit of St. Louis Airport (SUS), Chesterfield, Missouri. The pilot and copilot sustained fatal injuries. The 14 CFR Part 91 ferry flight departed SUS en route to the Toledo Express Airport (TOL), Toledo, Ohio. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The flight was on an instrument flight rules (IFR) flight plan. The pilot contacted the St. Louis Automated Flight Service Station (AFSS) by telephone at 1504 to file a flight plan from SUS to TOL with a departure time of 1550. At 1615, the pilot contacted the St. Louis AFSS to amend the departure time to 1800. At 1733 and 1736, the pilot called the St. Louis AFSS to obtain information about a runway closure at TOL. The pilot contacted the St. Louis AFSS at 1934 to re-file the flight plan from SUS to TOL with a new departure time of 2000. The pilot filed for an airspeed of 400 knots with an en route altitude of 33,000 feet. The proposed time en route was 45 minutes, and the pilot indicated that there were 3 hours of fuel on board. When the St Louis AFSS briefer asked the pilot why the aircraft had not departed an hour earlier, the pilot responded, "We had to abort because the airspeed indicator didn't work, but ... it's fixed now." At 1943, N604GA contacted the SUS Air Traffic Control T
Probable cause
The maintenance facility failed to properly install and inspect the elevator trim system resulting in the reversed elevator trim condition and the pilot's failure to maintain clearance with the terrain. Contributing factors included the dark night and low ceiling.
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Browse: Missouri
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
