Date: 201502
Local time of day: 0601-1200
Location: EWR.Airport, NJ
Flight conditions: VMC
Weather elements / visibility: 10
Light: Dawn
Aircraft: Gulfstream G250
Operator: Corporate
Operating under: Part 91
Flight plan: IFR
Mission: Passenger
Flight phase: Takeoff / Launch
Airspace: Class B EWR
Aircraft component: Pitot-Static System
Component problem: Improperly Operated
Reporter organization: Corporate
Reporter function: Captain
Reporter qualification: Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Human factors: Workload; Time Pressure; Distraction; Fatigue; Physiological - Other
Second reporter function: First Officer
Anomaly: Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy

Narrative: On takeoff out of Newark; we received a yellow IAS and ALT annunciations on my PFD.  I told my copilot about the situation and he immediately remembered that he neglected to remove the pitot/static plate from the left side of the aircraft.  We advised ATC that we needed to return to Newark due to an instrumentation issue.  We were cleared for the stadium visual 29 and landed without incident.  Newark tower elected to dispatch the fire trucks; however their services were not needed.Human factors for this include:One pilot goes to the terminal to pick up passengers while the other pre-flights the aircraft.  This divides the crew; which I feel is unique to any operation.My co-pilot had issues starting the aircraft preflight because the inlet for the water system had frozen up despite being emptied at our home hangar prior to departure.  A line personnel member disturbed my co-pilot during his routine and he never completed the preflight.My co-pilot mentioned that he had a bad nights sleep the night before.  We departed the hotel at XA00 which may be a compounding factor.The weather was extremely cold at 4 degrees Fahrenheit which lead to a minimal amount of loiter time outside of the aircraft.As with most incidents; it is not one item that causes a problem; but a chain of events.  I walked past the cover in question as I entered the aircraft and did not notice it.  There is not a flag on the plate and it is the same red color as the paint.This situation will be submitted to our company safety system and root causal analysis will be conducted.


Second narrative: Aircraft had been parked outside; on the ramp overnight with all covers; plugs; and pins installed. The preflight inspection was performed under night lighting conditions on an unlit ramp. Near the completion of my first circuit around the exterior of the aircraft; a line service technician approached me and informed me that they could not get the valves open on the aircraft to service with potable water. At the same time another line service technician approached with ice; newspapers; and the bag of galley stock that had been removed the night before to prevent from freezing. This technician also requested the coffee decanters from the galley. I interrupted my normal pre-flight flow to deal with both line technicians and did not remove the LH Static port ground cover (making a mental note to remove the cover after dealing with the line technicians).While evaluating the potable water uploading issue it was determined that the Water/Waste System control panel had not powered up subsequent to the APU start. This is a common problem with G280 aircraft that have cold soaked while powered down on the ground and require the aircraft APU and all electrical power be shut down after the environmental system has warmed the aircraft. While shutting down and restarting the APU and electrical system; to address the Water/Waste System issue; I completely forgot to remove the LH Static Port cover.Primary factor;. Allowing my normal pre-flight flow to be interrupted in mid flow; expecting to remember to pick up where I left off after distraction was resolved.Other contributing factors;. Short rest interval between the flight the night before and the subject scheduled flight.. Other pilot attending to other duties necessitating the entire pre-flight and aircraft flight prep to a single crewmember.. Less than restful sleep period prior to flight.


Synopsis: A G280 First Officer; preparing for a pre-dawn departure from a frigid EWR airport; encountered numerous interruptions and freezing temperature related system difficulties while conducting his pre-flight. The Captain was otherwise engaged with passenger greeting and boarding and was; thus; unavailable for consultation or assistance. After takeoff the Captain's ASI and altimeter were inoperative; which reminded the First Officer that the last interruption of his pre-flight prevented him from completing the left side exterior inspection and he had forgotten to return to complete the task. The static port cover; as a result; was still in place preventing associated instrumentation from operating. They returned safely to the VFR airport.