Narrative:

We taxied out for departure and all systems were normal. I was the pilot not flying and the first officer was the pilot flying. After takeoff; we were in our climb when I notice a flicker on my pfd; we were level 4 automation. I get this message on my pfd of IAS and it was amber. At this time I noticed my airspeed had increased to 260 KTS. I ask the pilot flying to check his airspeed. He was indicating 250 KTS. By this time; my airspeed went to 270 KTS and then we got the aural warning that the a/P (autopilot) had disconnected and then the a/T (autothrottle) disconnected also. We received a couple of EICAS messages. I ask the controller if we could level off to access the problem. After leveling off we realize my airspeed was erroneous and with the EICAS messages; we elected to return to the field. We did not declare an emergency but we did return to the field and an overweight landing was made. The log book writeup reflects this with the problem we had in flight.after our arrival at the gate; we were met by the mechanics. We were not sure why I lost my airspeed indication and we first thought it could have been a bird strike. While the mechanics were inspecting the smart probes with their flashlights; they ask me if the aircraft was dry washed the night before and I told them it was. Upon further investigation of the smart probes; we could see some type of residue inside that was kind of a clear substance. This was found in the right smart probe. They said that this was more than likely what cause me to lose my airspeed indication. There was a question as to whether the proper procedures were followed for securing the smart probes. The flight was canceled. For anyone who gets an aircraft that was dry washed the night before; extra attention should be made to inspect the pitot tubes (smart probes). This would be better done with a flashlight regardless of the time of day. It cannot be detected on a normal walk around.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: EMB190 Flight Crew and a Mechanic report on an air turn back due to airspeed malfunction caused by tape residue on a smart probe (pitot tube).

Narrative: We taxied out for departure and all systems were normal. I was the pilot not flying and the First Officer was the pilot flying. After takeoff; we were in our climb when I notice a flicker on my PFD; we were level 4 automation. I get this message on my PFD of IAS and it was amber. At this time I noticed my airspeed had increased to 260 KTS. I ask the pilot flying to check his airspeed. He was indicating 250 KTS. By this time; my airspeed went to 270 KTS and then we got the aural warning that the A/P (Autopilot) had disconnected and then the A/T (Autothrottle) disconnected also. We received a couple of EICAS messages. I ask the Controller if we could level off to access the problem. After leveling off we realize my airspeed was erroneous and with the EICAS messages; we elected to return to the field. We did not declare an emergency but we did return to the field and an overweight landing was made. The log book writeup reflects this with the problem we had in flight.After our arrival at the gate; we were met by the mechanics. We were not sure why I lost my airspeed indication and we first thought it could have been a bird strike. While the mechanics were inspecting the smart probes with their flashlights; they ask me if the aircraft was DRY WASHED the night before and I told them it was. Upon further investigation of the smart probes; we could see some type of residue inside that was kind of a clear substance. This was found in the right smart probe. They said that this was more than likely what cause me to lose my airspeed indication. There was a question as to whether the proper procedures were followed for securing the smart probes. The flight was canceled. For anyone who gets an aircraft that was dry washed the night before; extra attention should be made to inspect the pitot tubes (smart probes). This would be better done with a flashlight regardless of the time of day. It cannot be detected on a normal walk around.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.