DHC8-300 captain reports aircraft was struck by lightening during descent; causing the left dc gener...

Attributes
ACN	999302
Time
Date	201203
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.ARTCC
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	Dash 8-300
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Descent
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	DC Generator
Person 1
Function	Captain Pilot Not Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 200 Flight Crew Total 23000 Flight Crew Type 20000
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence

Narrative:

Flying approximately 50 miles south of destination in a descent in light rain showers; encountered heavy rain with lightening nearby; aircraft was struck near the right wing area by lightening. Left dc generator cl illuminated. Ran emergency checklist and cycled dc generator switch. Dc generator reset and light extinguished. Uns displayed various error messages. No other abnormalities noted. Continued the descent and landed without incident. Encountered a bright flash (fireball) followed by a loud boom and resulting caution light. Occurred due to the proximity of isolated cells in the area; that was not displayed on radar. Stay away from active cells if possible; although there were no indications they were nearby until we were struck.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: DHC8-300 Captain reports aircraft was struck by lightening during descent; causing the Left DC Generator to trip off. Flight continues to an uneventful landing at destination airport. Radar did not show any significant weather nearby at the time of the lightening strike.

Narrative: Flying approximately 50 miles south of destination in a descent in light rain showers; encountered heavy rain with lightening nearby; aircraft was struck near the right wing area by lightening. Left DC Generator CL illuminated. Ran emergency checklist and cycled DC Generator switch. DC Generator reset and light extinguished. UNS displayed various error messages. No other abnormalities noted. Continued the descent and landed without incident. Encountered a bright flash (fireball) followed by a loud boom and resulting caution light. Occurred due to the proximity of isolated cells in the area; that was not displayed on radar. Stay away from active cells if possible; although there were no indications they were nearby until we were struck.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 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.

DHC8-300 captain reports aircraft was struck by lightening during descent; causing the left dc generator to trip off. Flight continues to an uneventful landing at destination airport. Radar did not show any significant weather nearby at the time of the lightening strike.