Israel Aircraft Industries 1124 Westwind, Georgetown, Bahamas, May 24, 2006– The Westwind ran off the side of the runway when making an emergency landing at Exuma International Airport. The EMS flight was on an IFR flight plan from San Juan, Puerto Rico, to Norfolk, Va., in night visual conditions. The pilot said, “We received a left gen off annunciator light and I had the first officer accomplish the gen off [check].” He decided to divert to Punta Gorda, Fla., and one hour, 40 minutes later the pilot noticed several annunciations and saw that both GPS receivers were not getting input from the number-two electrical bus. The right generator appeared to be functioning normally but the battery gauge later read 11-14 volts. He declared an emergency and was vectored to Exuma.
At 1,500 feet, ready to land, the airplane “became dark” and there were no lights at the airport. After touchdown, the right main gear tire blew and the pilot could not control the airplane. The pilot, copilot and three members of the medical team sustained minor injuries but the patient was unharmed. The government of the Bahamas is investigating.