When a Beech Sierra flown by a 4,000-hour commercial pilot, accompanied by his wife and daughter, arrived at the Fulton County Airport at Wauseon, Ohio, the wind was from the west-southwest at 26 to 35 knots, with gusts as high as 43 knots. The VFR flight from Troy, Michigan, a distance of only 76 nm, had taken nearly an hour because of the powerful headwind aloft.
The pilot had briefed himself online. He may or may not have seen the special message from the National Weather Service warning of extremely strong winds and possible “minor property damage” — a warning intended, to be sure, principally for the owners of awnings and tall vehicles, not airplanes. But he was not unaware of the wind, which was blowing hard at Troy as well. While his airplane was being fueled he had inquired whether other airplanes were flying, and learned that only one had taken off: an MU-2, whose wing loading and speed put it in an entirely different class than the Sierra.
