| Occurrence Briefs are concise reports that detail the facts surrounding a transport safety occurrence, as received in the initial notification and any follow-up enquiries. They provide an opportunity to share safety messages in the absence of an investigation. Because occurrence briefs are not investigations under the Transport Safety Investigation Act 2003, the information in them is de-identified. |
What happened
On 26 April 2024, at 1447 local time, the pilot of a Cessna 525B Citation CJ3 departed Launceston Airport, Tasmania on a non-scheduled passenger transport charter to Bankstown Airport, New South Wales. The pilot, along with a safety pilot[1] (for contractual purposes) and four passengers, were on board.
During initial climb, the crew detected a noise outside the aircraft and observed that the standby airspeed indicator displayed a different figure than the primary and secondary airspeed indicator. The pilot levelled off the aircraft at 4,000 ft and advised air traffic control that they required a return to land. The pilot conducted a normal approach and landing at Launceston. After landing, the pilot conducted an external inspection of the aircraft and found a pitot probe[2] cover had not been removed before take-off.
Pre-flight inspection
The aircraft flew from Bankstown that morning and had been secured, which included the crew placing covers over the three pitot probes. At 1400 local time, the crew were informed that the passengers would arrive within 30 minutes. The crew arrived at the aircraft at 1410 and reported feeling pressured to complete the pre-flight preparations before the arrival of the passengers. Before the external inspection had been completed, the passengers arrived and both crew went to meet them. The safety pilot remained with the passengers while they waited for the aerodrome reporting officer to open the gate and the pilot returned to the aircraft to continue preparations and minimise further delays.
The external inspection, which included the removal of pitot probe covers, was not completed and the pilot entered the cockpit to finalise preparations for the flight. The safety pilot loaded the passengers and their luggage before securing the aircraft door for departure.
Operator’s investigation
The operator conducted a safety review and determined that the presence of a safety pilot in a single pilot operation may have created a distraction leading to the removal of the pitot probe cover being omitted from the pre-flight external inspection. Additionally, the operator did not have a procedure for the use of a safety pilot for the Cessna 525B Citation in the operations manual. The operator has taken action to develop procedures for use of a safety pilot on the Cessna 525B Citation and plans to implement them in its operations manual. It also determined that late changes to the departure time, and the subsequent delay while waiting for the aerodrome reporting officer, created additional distractions during the pre-flight preparations.
Safety message
Pilots must ensure that all pre-flight checks and procedures are carried out systematically as detailed in the flight manual. If interrupted, it is best practice to start again from the beginning to ensure that nothing is missed.
About this report
Decisions regarding whether to conduct an investigation, and the scope of an investigation, are based on many factors, including the level of safety benefit likely to be obtained from an investigation. For this occurrence, no investigation has been conducted and the ATSB did not verify the accuracy of the information. A brief description has been written using information supplied in the notification and any follow-up information in order to produce a short summary report, and allow for greater industry awareness of potential safety issues and possible safety actions.
[1] A safety pilot is a current and qualified pilot who is carried on board the aircraft should the pilot not meet defined operational or experience requirements to conduct the flight, or for the purpose of taking over control if there is elevated risk that the pilot may become incapacitated.
[2] Pitot probes provide air data computers and flight instruments with airspeed information and are ineffective if covered or blocked.