A pilot's decision to take-off on a road unsuitable for use led to the fatal crash of a Cessna 206 last year, according to the investigation report released today.
The Cessna U206 crashed after take-off near Croydon, QLD, in September 2013 when the left wingtip struck a tree during the take-off roll, spearing the aircraft into trees. Both pilot and passenger died on impact.
The pilot had landed on a nearby public road in order to repair machinery at a work camp. On take-off the pilot elected to use the curved access road as a runway rather than taxi back to the public road.
"The take-off was conducted on a relatively short and narrow section of road, which curved about 155 m from the reported commencement of the take-off, and was surrounded by trees," the Australian Transport Safety Board found. "The distance available for take-off was much shorter than the distance advised by the aircraft’s pilot operating handbook under the prevailing conditions."
Although they were unable to determine why the pilot chose that specific take-off point, the ATSB speculates on the reasons in the report.
"There was no apparent reason for the pilot to attempt a take-off from that location when the road on which the pilot had previously successfully landed was nearby. It is most likely that the pilot misjudged the distance available on the access road, the potential effect of the prevailing conditions on the take-off, the aircraft’s performance, or a combination of these factors.
"Alternately, the pilot may have had a false recollection of the relative layout of the two roads and thought that there was more take-off room available beyond the curve in the access road. It is also possible that he considered traffic on the public road to be a greater hazard for take-off than for landing."
During their investigation, the ATSB found the pilot had significant medical conditions that were not reported to CASA, and that the aircraft had been flown over the maximum hours between inspections on six occasions. Neither of these were considered contributing factors.
The report contains only one factor: "The take-off was attempted from a road that did not meet the requirements for a suitable landing and take-off area."
The full report is available for download on the ATSB website.