Dassault/Sud FAN JET accident near Jamestown, New York, December 21, 2008
On December 21, 2008 at about 6:00 am local time, a Dassault/Sud FAN JET, registered N165TW, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Jamestown, New York (Chautauqua County/Jamestown airport). It was flown under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The inability to stop the airplane on the remaining runway because of icy runway conditions. A factor was the failure of the drag chute to properly deploy.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 21, 2008 · about 6:00 am local time
- Place
- Jamestown, New York · Chautauqua County/Jamestown · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Dassault/Sud FAN JET FALCON 20
- Registration
- N165TW · registry record · serial 65
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The co-pilot was performing a nighttime approach and landing to runway 25. No runway condition reports were received by the flight crew while airborne, and a NOTAM was in effect, stating, “thin loose snow over patchy thin ice.” After landing, the co-pilot called out that the airplane was sliding and the wheel brakes were ineffective. The captain took the controls, activated the air brakes, and instructed the co-pilot to deploy the drag chute. The crew could not stop the airplane in the remaining runway distance and the airplane overran the runway by approximately 100 feet. After departing the runway end, the landing gear contacted a snow berm that was the result of earlier plowing. The captain turned the airplane around and taxied to the ramp. Subsequent inspection of the airplane revealed a fractured nose gear strut and buckling of the fuselage. The spring-loaded drag chute extractor cap activated, but the parachute remained in its tail cone container. Both flight crewmembers reported that the runway was icy at the time of the accident and braking action was “nil.” The airport manager reported that when the airplane landed, no airport staff were on duty and had not been for several hours. He also reported that when the airport staff left for the evening, the runway conditions were adequate. The runway had been plowed and sanded approximately 20 hours prior to the accident, sanded two more times during the day, and no measurable precipitation was recorded within that time frame. The reason that the drag chute failed to deploy was not determined.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Runway excursion during landing (landing roll) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Surface speed/braking › Attain/maintain not possible
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surfa › Snow/slush/ice covered › Effect on operation
- factor Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Flight control system › Drag control system › Failure
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,028 hours in all; 1,160 in this make and model; 111 in the last 90 days; 53 in the last 30 days; 2,215 as pilot in command; 920 on instruments
- Last flight review: October 2, 2008
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,086 hours in all; 80 in this make and model; 80 in the last 90 days; 23 in the last 30 days; 1,276 as pilot in command; 643 on instruments
- Last flight review: September 13, 2008
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 16,360 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, September 6, 2008; 114 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 28,660 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: General Electric CF700-2D2 (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Ameristar Jet Charter, Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: TUL Tulsa OK at 4:00 am
- Destination: JHW Jamestown NY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 25, 5,299 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,300 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.68 inHg
- Observation at 5:55 am from JHW
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.