Rockwell International 690B accident near Rio Grande, PR
On December 3, 2008, a Rockwell International 690B (airplane) was involved in an accident near Rio Grande, PR. 3 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- December 3, 2008
- Place
- Rio Grande, PR
- Aircraft
- Rockwell International 690B · Airplane
- Injuries
- 3 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 18.326°N, 65.778°W
- NTSB ID
- 20081203X44941
Official records · ERA09FA078
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Transcript of Voice Recordings (TUPJ-ATCT): Transcript (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On December 3, 2008, about 1205 Atlantic standard time, a Rockwell International 690B, N318WA, operated by Websta's Aviation Services Inc., was destroyed when it impacted terrain while maneuvering about 4 nautical miles southeast of Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. The certificated airline transport pilot and two passengers were killed. Day instrument meteorological conditions prevailed in the area of the accident. No flight plan had been filed for the flight, which departed Beef Island International Airport (TUPJ), Tortola, British Virgin Islands destined for Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (TJSJ), San Juan, Puerto Rico. The commercial flight was conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 135. According to voice and radar data provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the accident airplane was inbound to TJSJ from the east, descending at 250 knots ground speed from 8,800 feet above mean sea level (msl), on a 270 degree assigned heading and was instructed to enter the right downwind for runway 10 at TJSJ. The airplane's altitude readout was observed by the approach controller to change to "XXX." The pilot was queried by the approach controller regarding his altitude and the pilot advised that he was descending to 3,200 feet msl. The pilot was then asked to confirm that he was in visual flight rules (VFR) conditions and was advised by the approach controller that the minimum vectoring altitude (MVA) for the area was 5,500 feet msl. The pilot responded that “We just ahh,” at which time the approach controller advised the pilot that
Probable cause
The pilot's continued visual flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in an in-flight collision with terrain.
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Browse: Puerto Rico · Rockwell International aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
