{{Infobox Airliner accident

| name=Skyway Enterprises Flight 7101

| Date=October 29, 2014

| Type=Departed controlled flight during initial climb

| image=Short 360-200, Skyway N380MQ.jpg

| occurrence_type=Accident

| caption=N380MQ, the aircraft involved in the accident, landing at Princess Juliana Int'l, 20 December 2011

| Site=3 miles from departure end of runway 28 [[Princess Juliana International Airport|SXM]], [[Saint Martin]]

| Fatalities=2

| Injuries=0

| Aircraft Type=[[Short 360|Short 360-200]] | Operator=[[Skyway Enterprises]]

| Origin=[[Princess Juliana International Airport]], [[Saint Martin]]

| Destination=[[Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport]], [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]]

|IATA = KI7101

|ICAO = SKZ1701

|callsign = SKYWAY-INC 7101

| tail_number=N380MQ

| Passengers=0

| Crew=2

| Survivors=0}}

{{Coord|18|02|18|N|63|07|38|W|region:_type:event|display=title}}

On October 29, 2014, '''Skyway Enterprises Flight 7101''', a [[Short 360]] cargo aircraft operating a non-scheduled flight from [[Princess Juliana International Airport]] on the Caribbean island of [[Saint Martin]] to [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]], crashed into the sea shortly after take-off, killing both crew members on board.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20141030X64658&key=1|title=DCA15RA018|work=ntsb.gov|accessdate=30 April 2015}}</ref>.

The subsequent investigation concluded that [[somatogravic illusion]] was the most likely cause of the loss of control and subsequent crash.<ref name=sint />

==Accident==

On the day of the accident, the [[Short 360-200]], operated by [[Skyway Enterprises]] on a [[FedEx]] charter flight, took off from Princess Juliana's runway 28 at 18:35 local time (22:35Z). During the initial climb-out, approximately 30 seconds after takeoff and at an altitude of about {{convert|500|ft|m|-1}}, the air traffic controller gave instructions to change heading to 230 degrees for traffic.<ref name="harroranter"/> Shortly afterwards, the aircraft crashed into Maho Bay approximately three miles from shore. The pilot and co-pilot suffered fatal injuries.<ref name="harroranter">{{cite web|url=http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20141029-0|title=ASN Aircraft accident Shorts 360-200 N380MQ Sint Maarten-Juliana Airport (SXM)|author=Harro Ranter|date=29 October 2014|work=aviation-safety.net|accessdate=30 April 2015}}</ref>

==Aircraft and crew==

The accident aircraft, registration ''N380MQ '', was manufactured by the [[Short Brothers]] aerospace company in the [[United Kingdom]] in 1986 with [[Serial number|manufacturer's serial number]] SH3702. It was powered by two [[Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6|Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65AR]] turboprop engines rated at 1,424 shp (1,062&nbsp;kW) each.<ref name="harroranter"/>.

The aircraft was originally ordered as a passenger airliner for [[Simmons Airlines]]. It soon after became a part of American Airline's regional carrier [[American Eagle (airline brand)| American Eagle]]. It operated for American Eagle until the mid to later part of the 1990s. In the early 2000s, it was purchased by Skyway Enterprises and converted to carry cargo. Up until the crash, the aircraft was still painted in its former American Eagle livery with their logo and titles removed.{{Citation needed|date=November 2017}}

The crew consisted of a 49-year-old German national carrying a valid United States green card as captain and a U.S. citizen from Puerto Rico as first officer.<ref name="thedailyherald.com1"/><ref name="thedailyherald.com2"/>

==Recovery==

At 20:30 local time on the day of the crash, large volumes of debris were reported washing up on shore between Mullet Bay and La Samanna. Rescue efforts were hampered by bad weather, with lightning and heavy rain. At approximately 21:20 the battered body of the pilot Eric Schnell<ref name="thedailyherald.com2">{{cite web|url=http://www.thedailyherald.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=51363:aircraft-wreckage-located-pilots-body-not-in-cockpit&catid=1:islands-news&Itemid=54|title=Aircraft wreckage located, pilot’s body not in cockpit|work=The Daily Herald|accessdate=5 May 2015}}</ref> was recovered between Mullet Bay and Cupecoy by the Coast Guard, working with the [[Royal Marines]].<ref name="thedailyherald.com"/>

On November 5, 2014 a team of experts arrived from Puerto Rico to assist with recovery of main fuselage from the seabed. A [[Global Positioning System]] (GPS) set that was found during the search and rescue operation was sent to the [[National Transportation Safety Board]] (NTSB) to assist in narrowing the search area.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sintmaartengov.org/PressReleases/Pages/Vessel-to-arrive-Friday-to-Locate-Wreckage-of-Skyway-Airway-Short-SH36-aircraft.aspx|title=Vessel to arrive Friday to Locate Wreckage of Skyway Airway Short SH36 aircraft|work=sintmaartengov.org|accessdate=30 April 2015}}</ref>

On November 10, 2014 the fuselage and a wing were located at a depth of 75 feet by the rescue team in cooperation with the Coast Guard. The missing co-pilot and his seat were not found inside the cabin.<ref name="thedailyherald.com1"/>

During a search of the wreckage site and surrounding area on November 11, 2014, scuba divers found the body of the co-pilot, still strapped to his seat.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sxmgovernment.com/2014/11/11/update-full-details-rigoberto-lopez-the-pilot-of-the-plane-crash-remains-have-been-found-near-wreckage/|title=Plane crash remains have been found near wreckage|work=sxmgovernment.com|accessdate=30 April 2015}}</ref>

==Investigation==

Details investigators examined include:

===Weather===

At 19:00 local time, 25 minutes after the crash the weather was reported as "Wind 210 degrees at 8 knots, varying in direction between 160 and 250 degrees; Visibility: 10+ km; light rain; few clouds at 1300 feet; broken clouds at 3500 feet; Temperature: 27°C; Dew point 25°C; Pressure: 1011 mb".<ref name="harroranter"/>

===Prior incident===

"The crash follows another incident at SXM Airport just two days prior in which the same aircraft is understood to have been involved. The aircraft is said to have developed a problem during landing and to have veered to the left on the runway, nearly hitting the airport’s SOL jet fuel bunker, after which it had to be removed by the Fire Department. The aircraft had undergone repairs during the last two days."<ref name="thedailyherald.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.thedailyherald.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=51134:one-missing-one-dead-after-fedex-plane-crash&catid=1:islands-news&Itemid=54|title=One missing, one dead after FedEx plane crash|work=The Daily Herald|accessdate=30 April 2015}}</ref>

===Technical problems===

"Unconfirmed reports stated that the girlfriend of one of the pilots has said that her partner told her he felt uneasy about flying the plane after its recent near miss with technical problems, when it nearly crashed into a SOL fuel tanker on landing two days earlier."<ref name="thedailyherald.com1">{{cite web|url=http://www.thedailyherald.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=51152:deceased-pilot-identified-co-pilot-search-continues&catid=1:islands-news&Itemid=54 |title=Deceased pilot identified, co-pilot search continues|work=The Daily Herald|accessdate=10 May 2015}}</ref>

The Sint Maarten Civil Aviation Authority released an aircraft accident report on September 23, 2016 stating:

"The investigation believes the PF experienced a loss of control while initiating a turn to the required departure heading after take-off. Flap retraction and its associated acceleration combined to set in motion a somatogravic illusion for the PF. The PF’s reaction to pitch down while initiating a turn most likely led to an extreme unusual attitude and the subsequent crash. PM awareness to the imminent loss of control and any attempt to intervene could not be determined. Evidence show that Crew resource management (CRM) performance was insufficient to avoid the crash."

"Contributing factors to the loss of control were environmental conditions including departure from an unfamiliar runway with loss of visual references (black hole), night and rain with gusting winds."<ref name=sint>{{cite report|url=http://www.sintmaartengov.org/Policy%20and%20Reports/SMCAA%20Final%20Report%20N380MQ%20(2).pdf|title=Aircraft Accident Report SkyWay Enterprises Inc., Flight 7101|date=23 September 2016|publisher=Sint Maarten Civil Aviation Authority|access-date=24 November 2018}}</ref>

==References==

{{reflist}}

==External links==

* {{ASN accident|id=20141029-0}}

{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 2014}}

[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 2014]]

[[Category:Accidents and incidents involving the Short 360]]

[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents involving ditching]]

[[Category:Aviation in Sint Maarten]]

[[Category:2014 in Sint Maarten]]

[[Category:October 2014 events]]