SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (WKRN) — After a jet registered to a Tennessee business collided with another jet at an Arizona airport earlier this month, killing one person and injuring four others, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) shared new details about the incident.
The crash was reported at the Scottsdale Airport at approximately 2:38 p.m. MT on Feb. 10, between a Gates Learjet 35A and a parked Gulfstream G200, according to the NTSB. The Learjet captain died; the Learjet first officer, one Learjet passenger, and an occupant inside the Gulfstream plane were seriously injured; and another Learjet passenger sustained minor injuries.
Officials said the flight originated from Florida and made a refueling stop in Texas before it continued to Arizona, transporting the passengers for a local event. The captain was the Learjet’s regular pilot and had flown with the first officer consistently since June.
Investigators obtained security footage and numerous cell phone videos, including one taken from a golf course near the final approach path. The NTSB said the plane “can be seen on final approach with the left landing gear trailing aft from its normal position. Additionally, there is a circular bright spot seen above the landing gear strut, consistent with the landing gear light illuminating the bottom of the wing flap and the landing gear strut positioned facing aft.”
A review of surveillance videos and ADS-B data showed that at 1438:16, the airplane touched down on runway 21 just before the aiming point markings with full flaps extended. It immediately entered a leftwing-low attitude and began veering left, exiting the runway surface. The airplane traveled over the rock-covered runway-safety-area islands located between the runway and taxiways. The airplane crossed Taxiway Bravo, collided with the windsock, and entered the ramp area where it struck the right side of a parked Gulfstream G200 (see figures 2 and 3). The airplane was not equipped with thrust reversers and the drag chute was not deployed.
Security camera recordings showed that the airplane came to rest at 1438:36 with the nose embedded between the right side of the Gulfstream’s fuselage and the inboard trailing edge of the right wing. The engines on the accident airplane continued to operate. The airport’s emergency response fire truck arrived at 1440:53 and sprayed fire retardant on the front of the G200 about 5 minutes later. The passengers reported that the right-seated passenger (wearing a seatbelt) regained consciousness first and woke up the left-seated passenger who had been thrown forward in the passenger cabin. The Scottsdale Fire Department arrived on-scene about 1447:30. The right-seated passenger eventually was able to remove the right emergency exit and at 1448:37, with the right engine still running, she egressed over the right wing carrying two small dogs. She then turned back and went to retrieve the second passenger. At 1458:11 the airport fire truck sprayed foam on the right engine to shut it down and the FO was removed from the cockpit about 1700 and transported to the hospital.
Portion of NTSB preliminary crash report
According to officials, the same flight crew from this incident had a landing mishap in June 2024 in Oklahoma. A video of the event reportedly revealed the plane landed hard just short of the runway surface and bounced several times, causing both left main landing gear tires to burst.
“The pilot hired a mechanic, who had worked on the airplane when it was owned by the previous owner, to perform a hard landing inspection on the airplane,” the NTSB said. “During an interview with the mechanic, he stated that after obtaining a flight permit and repositioning the airplane to his facility, he removed both main landing gear to facilitate the pertinent eddy-current inspections that were required. He stated he followed the maintenance manual for all of the work he performed.”
While the flight time and cycles between the maintenance conducted between the June incident and the February crash are unknown, officials said a mechanic who performed the landing gear servicing in December reported nothing appeared unusual but noted that the left landing gear took an excessive amount of grease.
The NTSB said the flight crew didn’t make any radio calls indicating they were aware the landing gear may not be operating correctly. You can read the NTSB’s full preliminary report below:
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Learjet 35A involved in the Feb. 10 crash was registered to Franklin-based company Chromed in Hollywood, Inc.
In a statement, rock band Mötley Crüe confirmed the Learjet was owned by frontman Vince Neil.
“The pilot was tragically killed; the co-pilot and other passengers were taken to local hospitals,” the statement reads, in part. “Vince was not on the plane. Vince’s girlfriend and her friend suffered injuries, albeit not life threatening.”
The band said as details emerge, their hearts go out to those affected.
