Just Two Onboard During Landing

A Beech B200 Super King Air, N479BR, made an Autoland emergency landing at Broomfield-Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport, CO (BJC/KBJC) in what appears to be the first real-time use of the safety feature.

The avionics manufacturer admitted that they could... "confirm that an emergency Autoland activation occurred in Broomfield, Colorado," the company said in a statement. "The Autoland took place on Sat., Dec. 20, resulting in a successful landing. We look forward to sharing additional details at the appropriate time." 

They also confirmed that it was the first use of the system that was not a test or a demonstration.

The charter company for the plane told CBS Colorado that everyone involved was OK. The aircraft was being operated by Buffalo River Outfitters. It was unclear from reports why the Autoland feature was activated.

The FAA issued the following statement: "A Beechcraft Super King Air landed safely at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Colorado around 2:20 p.m. local time on Saturday, Dec. 20, after the pilot lost communication with air traffic control. An onboard emergency Autoland system was activated. Two people were on board. The FAA is investigating."

There were no passengers when the aircraft "experienced a rapid, uncommanded loss of pressurization," Buffalo River Outfitters, which owns the plane, said in a statement. The two pilots immediately put on their oxygen masks and the Autoland system "automatically engaged exactly as designed when the cabin altitude exceeded the prescribed safe levels," the company said. The pilots decided to leave the system engaged due to the "complexity" of the situation, according to Buffalo River Outfitters. "While the system performed exactly as expected, the pilots were prepared to resume manual control of the aircraft should the system have malfunctioned in any way," the company said.

A number of questions have arisen due to the nature of the incident and the pilot's somewhat mysterious decision to continue with Autoland when they were allegedly otherwise capable of completing the flight... IF the system could be shutdown once engaged. 

"We are aware of the event and currently collecting information to determine if it meets the criteria for an investigation," the NTSB said in a statement. 

FMI: https://www.buffaloriveroutfitters.com/