Cessna 310L accident near Atlanta, Georgia, September 15, 2002

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

The pilot performed a VOR approach to the 3,378 foot-long, 0.7 percent upsloping runway which became in sight at the "visual descent point." The airplane was landed on the wet runway with full flaps approximately 1,500 feet from the approach end of the runway between 80 and 85 mph. After touchdown the pilot announced to the passenger of having no brakes and retracted the flaps. She announced to the passenger again of, "...still no brakes"; the airplane did not begin to slow until the flaps were retracted. The airplane traveled off the end of the runway and a left skid was initiated causing the right main landing gear to collapse. She further reported, "Note: this runway has been seal coated with black paint sealer. It is very slick when wet. Much more so than asphalt." Examination of the main landing gear tires by FAA revealed the damage was consistent with hydroplaning. Additionally, "Tread reversal is evident particularly on the right main tire. Both tires had a section of approximately 10 inches long across the entire width where tread separation was evident." Runway 9-27 was crack sealed and coal-tar sealer/rejuvenator was applied before the accident date. Following the process, wet friction tests on treated and untreated areas of the runway revealed the treated area of the runway experienced a loss of 0.05 to 0.08 Mu (friction coefficient value) when compared with the untreated area, but the total treated area had an average of 0.72 Mu. New design/runway construction Mu value is .72. No one of the airport director's staff are aware of any problems associated with the runway crack sealing/seal coating. The Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) indicates in part that pilots are cautioned that descent from the MDA at the missed approach point (MAP) may be inadvisable or impossible, on a nonprecision approach even if current weather conditions meet the published ceiling and visibility. The aircraft's speed, height above runway, descent rate, and runway length need to be considered by the pilot to determine if a safe landing can be accomplished. The performance chart in the airplane owner's manual indicates the ground roll distance is 720 feet and the total distance over a 50-foot obstacle is 1,301 feet; the chart does not specify distance to add when landing on a wet runway or distance to subtract due to an upsloping runway .

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.