| Crash location | 41.446111°N, 85.934722°W |
| Nearest city | Nappanee, IN
41.442825°N, 86.001388°W 3.5 miles away |
| Tail number | N7940Q |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 10 Aug 2004 |
| Aircraft type | Cessna 310Q |
| Additional details: | None |
On August 10, 2004, about 1830 central daylight time, a Cessna 310Q, N7940Q, piloted by a private pilot, sustained substantial damage on impact with terrain during an aborted takeoff from runway 27 at Nappanee Municipal Airport, near Nappanee, Indiana. The personal flight was operating under 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. An Instrument Flight Rules flight plan was on file. The pilot reported that he and his four passengers were uninjured. The flight was originating at the time of the accident and was destined for Griffing Sandusky Airport, near Sandusky, Ohio.
The pilot said that he completed a preflight inspection of the airplane. The pilot's accident report stated:
While taxing, I noticed there was about 300 feet of
unusable sod at the end of he runway. I then held the
brakes, applied full power, and started my takeoff roll.
It was a perfect takeoff, until I reached 105 mph. I
attempted to rotate the plane, but was unable to even
lift the nose wheel off the ground. I tried again at
115 mph, but the plane was still unresponsive. After
the 2nd failed rotation attempt, I immediately closed
the throttles and applied heavy breaking. I threw off
my headset and told all passengers to hold on. When I
saw that I was going to be unable to stop the plane
before hitting the fence, I told all passengers to
brace themselves. While I kept the plane straight, we
went through a barb-wire fence, up over a road, down an
easement and stopped in a farmer's field. Upon hitting
the easement, the right main landing gear collapsed. As
soon as the plane came to a complete stop, I told [apassenger]
to open the door now, and I told all the passengers to
evacuate the plane immediately, meanwhile I closed the
mixtures and shut down the master and magnetos, then
exited the plane.
The delay in the pilot's performance of an aborted takeoff. A factor was the reported restricted movement of the elevator. Additional factors were the rising easement and roadway the airplane went over before coming to rest in the farmers field.