Flight For Life Colorado - Non-injury incident

Date: 8/10/2006 1650 MDT

Program: Flight For Life Colorado
	4231 W. 16th Ave.
	Denver, CO 80204

Type: King Air 200
Tail #: 203LG
Operator/Vendor: Mayo Aviation

Weather: Clear. Not a factor

Team: Pilot, Flight Nurse, Flight RT. No injuries reported. No patient. 

Description: 
	During taxi to runway for takeoff, the pilot noticed a sudden loss of
	braking action on the right side.  Reverse prop thrust was used to
	slow the aircraft to an uneventful stop.  Even though it rolled
	through the threshold lights at the end of the runway, not one was
	broken.  Once the aircraft was shut down it was towed to the hangar
	for inspection.

Additional Info: 
	After a thorough investigation, the same braking failure could not be
	reproduced.  Two ideas have been generated to explain the loss of
	braking action on the right side:
	
	1) The aircraft parking brake may not have been fully disengaged
	before taxi, resulting in a brake heating situation, primarily on the
	right side.  When brakes were applied during taxi, the right side
	failed due to overheating.
	
	2) Air conditioning for the King Air is supplied by the right hand
	engine. It's theorized that during the taxi, slightly more power was
	applied to the right engine to maintain minimum engine RPM in order
	to keep the air conditioner compressor engaged properly. The pilot
	may have unconsciously applied some slight right brake pressure to
	counter some of that additional thrust being generated on the right
	side, resulting in an overheated brake system.
	
	All pilots have been advised to insure that the parking brake is
	fully disengaged prior to taxi, and to be aware of possible
	inadvertent brake pedal pressure during taxi.
	
	The NTSB was advised of this incident and no formal report was deemed
	warranted.

Source: Kathleen Mayer; Program Director

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The CONCERN network shares verified information to alert medical transport programs when an accident / incident has occurred. Please share the above information with your program staff. If you have further questions, please contact the CONCERN Coordinator, David Kearns at 800 525 3712 or email: coordinator@concern-network.org.

Copyright 2006 ASTNA