King Air Survives Structural Damage

On February 2, Super King Air B200 N777AJ survived an uncontrolled descent and structural damage after the inner ply of the windshield cracked at 27,000 feet and the pilots depressurized the airplane and disconnected the autopilot. According to the NTSB, the crew was unable to use the oxygen system and evidently lost consciousness. They revived below 10,000 feet, managed to recover control of the aircraft and made an emergency landing at Cape Girardeau, Mo. The horizontal stabilizer, elevators and wings were severely damaged. The King Air windshield is in two parts with Mylar in between, said the NTSB, and the crack first appeared in the lower corner of the inner layer of the left-hand windshield. Flown by pilot Sheldon Stone and copilot Adam Moore, the turboprop twin left Rogers Municipal Carter Field, Ark., at 8:39 a.m., en route to Shenandoah Regional Airport, Va., after an earlier flight from Arkadelphia, Ark., home base of the airplane. Built in 1998, the airplane is registered to and operated by Horizon Timber Services. The NTSB found that the oxygen system functioned when tested on February 5.