CESSNA CITATION 550, OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA., MAY 20, 2002–Substantial damage but little injury resulted from an aborted takeoff at the Wiley Post Airport in Bethany, Okla. The ATP and four passengers were uninjured, but one other passenger sustained minor injuries in the early-morning departure bound for Greeley, Colo.
According to the pilot’s statements, preflight and runup checks were normal and the flight controls were free and correct. ATC cleared the pilot for departure on Runway 17L, who later told investigators that as he reached V1 and pulled back on the control column, nothing happened. He said the nosewheel never left the ground and he aborted the takeoff. The last speed the pilot recalled seeing was 120 kt. Although he applied maximum braking, the airplane went off the right side of the runway and through a fence at the airport’s southern boundary. It continued to skid across a road and a second fence before stopping in a muddy field.
Registered to Airlease of Oklahoma City, the Citation was being operated by Avalon Correctional Services. VMC prevailed at the time of the flight and the pilots had filed an IFR flight plan for the Part 91 business flight. Investigators reported the runway surface was dry at the time of the accident.