Bombardier Learjet 55, Casper, Wyo., March 17, 2009–The flight crew’s failure to follow manufacturer’s emergency procedures for a high-energy stop inspection following a rejected takeoff was to blame for the accident, which damaged the Canadian-registered twinjet after a second takeoff attempt. The flight crew told the NTSB that during their first takeoff attempt, controllers reported that they believed they saw smoke coming from the airplane. The crew aborted the takeoff as the twinjet was accelerating through 80 knots. After exiting the runway, the crew verified the normal operation of the engines and lined up for a second takeoff attempt less than six minutes after the initial aborted run. As the airplane began to accelerate, the crew heard a pair of loud bangs followed by a yawing to the right. The crew slowed the Learjet and exited the runway.
Upon stopping and exiting the airplane, the captain saw a fire near the left main gear and ordered an evacuation. Subsequent inspection revealed fire damage to the left main gear, a blown tire and a puncture hole in the right side of the fuselage just aft of the cockpit. A contributing factor to the accident was the flight’s exceedance of the aircraft’s maximum brake energy weight. The flight crew reported that the aircraft weighted 20,772 pounds at the time of the accident, exceeding the maximum brake energy weight by nearly 500 pounds. According to the manufacturer’s flight manual, emergency procedures under those circumstances would have demanded a high-energy stop inspection after the initial takeoff attempt.