| Crash location | 30.336389°N, 81.514444°W |
| Nearest city | Jacksonville, FL
30.332184°N, 81.655651°W 8.4 miles away |
| Tail number | N80MJ |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 04 Jun 2006 |
| Aircraft type | Cessna 421B |
| Additional details: | None |
On June 4, 2006, about 1300 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 421B airplane, N80MJ, sustained substantial damage during a gear-up landing at the Craig Municipal Airport, Jacksonville, Florida, following an emergency descent and landing after takeoff. The airplane was being operated by the pilot as an instrument flight rules (IFR) personal cross-country flight under Title 14, CFR Part 91, when the accident occurred. The solo private certificated pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and an instrument flight plan was filed.
During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on June 15, the pilot said during initial climb after takeoff he smelled smoke and felt heat in the cockpit. He said there was no place immediately ahead to land, so he turned back toward the airport. He said several aural warnings sounded. He thought one was the landing gear warning horn, and the other was his digital fuel indicator, which he said showed no fuel flow. He reported that during the descent to the airport, his communications radio malfunctioned, and he was unable to contact the tower after declaring the initial emergency. The pilot said he thought the airplane was on fire, and landed gear-up in the dirt between the taxiway and the runway. He said the four fuel tanks were full, and that no maintenance had recently been performed on the airplane. According to the pilot, the airplane collided with runway signs causing structural damage to the wings.
On June 8, during a telephone conversation with the IIC, an FAA operations inspector said he had examined the accident airplane accompanied by an FAA maintenance inspector. He said they found no sign of heat or fire in the engine compartments or fuselage. He said when they applied power to the navigation instruments and communications equipment, they found no anomalies. The airplane was not examined by the NTSB.
An undetermined event during takeoff/initial climb, which resulted in an emergency landing after takeoff and substantial damage to the airplane.