QUESTAIR INC VENTURE

Full Narrative

According to the pilot, the airplane accelerated as expected during the takeoff roll, and at rotation, a loud "pop" was heard and a "thump" was felt. He and the copilot agreed that they had probably experienced a blowout of a main landing gear tire. The pilot conducted a fly-by of the air traffic control tower, but the tower personnel were unable to assess the damage, and he then requested a return to a different runway for landing. The airplane touched down in the center of the 150-feet wide runway, but the crew was unable to maintain directional control with a full application of right rudder and right brake. The airplane departed the left side of the runway, and struck a concrete drainage culvert, which resulted in substantial damage to the airframe. Examination of the left main landing gear tire revealed evidence of a puncture, and tearing around its circumference, but no foreign objects associated with foreign object damage (FOD). Examination revealed that the inboard half of each main landing gear tire displayed significant wear, no remaining tread, but no chord visible. Operations on the departure runway were continued without interruption, and no post-accident FOD check of the runway was conducted by the airport authority.