Cessna 182B N2764G accident near Fults, Illinois

Probable cause

The malfunction of the flap assembly, which resulted in a restriction of aileron control. Contributing to the accident was maintenance personnel’s inadequate inspection of a corroded flap control cable.

NTSB analysis

The commercial pilot was conducting a local skydiving flight with four skydivers. After the airplane climbed to 3,800 ft, one of the skydivers deployed, and at 11,000 ft, the remaining three skydivers deployed. The pilot stated that the procedure for deploying skydivers was to input 10° of flaps before the skydivers' deployment. After the last skydiver exited the airplane, the pilot closed the door and started to retract the flaps from 10° to 0°. The pilot heard a "metallic" snap, and the airplane went into a spin. The pilot recovered the airplane from the spin about 7,000 ft. He discovered that the right flap was partially deployed about 5° down and appeared to be crooked in its track. In addition, he noted a vibration from the right flap with restricted aileron control. The pilot stated that lateral control was difficult to maintain. After a radio conference with a mechanic and about 30 minutes of trying to control the airplane, the pilot chose to bail out of the airplane; he maneuvered the airplane over unpopulated farmland, shut down the engine, and parachuted. The pilot watched the airplane circle after his parachute deployed. The pilot landed and did not sustain injuries; the airplane impacted terrain and sustained substantial damage.

Examination of the wreckage revealed that the right flap showed evidence of preimpact contact with the right aileron. There was about 1/2 inch of rubbed exposed primer in the area of the contact. The right flap appeared to be misaligned in its track, and the outboard portion of the flap would not freely extend from the retracted position. The outboard side of the flap was retracted, and the inboard side was extended in the track. Due to damage from impact forces, the preimpact condition of the flap rollers and tracks could not be determined. A broken control cable inboard of the flap bell crank was rusty in the area of separation. It is likely that the right flap interfered with the right aileron and thus resulted in restricted aileron movement in flight. Review of maintenance records did not show any recent work performed on the flap control system. The airplane had flown about 80 hours since its most recent annual inspection.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN15LA323 for the full record.