Aviation Safety

At 1850 central time, a Dassault Falcon lost power on approach to Lambert-St. Louis International Airport and was ditched into the Mississippi River. The two pilots suffered serious injuries. The airplane had departed Del Rio, Texas, about 2:20 before the accident on a Part 135 cargo flight. The airplane flew the ILS Rwy 30R approach, but missed. As the airplane was being vectored for a second approach, the pilots asked several times how far from the airport they would be going. When on base leg, the crew stated it had a fuel limitation and declared an emergency when switched to the tower frequency. No measurable quantity of fuel was detected in the fuel system when the aircraft was recove…

At about 2040 eastern time, a Mooney M20K suffered an apparent nose gear problem and was damaged during landing at Greenwood Lake Airport. The pilot received minor injuries. The pilot said he had transported another pilot to Stewart International Airport to pick up another airplane. At the landing at Stewart, he detected a nosewheel shimmy. The two pilots examined the nose gear but could find no anomalies. The two then departed in separate airplanes for the return flight. The pilot said that, after he touched down, the nose of the airplane veered to the right. He pulled back on the yoke to ease the nose up, but he pulled back too hard and the airplane became airborne again. He thought he wou…

At about 1100 central time, a Cessna 172N collided with a fence during the landing roll at a private airstrip at Circle Bar Ranch. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot said he overflew the airstrip and observed the windsock, which indicated the wind was from the northeast at approximately 10 knots. He entered the traffic pattern for runway 09, and twice performed a go-around. Following the second approach, the wind was from the northwest and he entered the traffic pattern for a full-stop landing on runway 27. He touched down about a quarter of the way down the 2,400-foot runway but, at the midpoint of the runway, the airplane accelerated, apparently due to a wind shift. The ai…

At about 1030 Pacific time, a Cessna 177RG collided with a parked Piper PA-23-250 prior to taxing for takeoff at Redding Municipal Airport. The pilot of the Cessna was not injured and the Piper was unoccupied. The pilot told investigators he was a CFI student and was preparing to practice flying from the right seat. During the starting sequence, the pilot inadvertently set the throttle at a quarter inch from full throttle instead of at a quarter inch from idle. When the engine started, the pilot was not able to stop the airplane. The right wing of the Cessna passed over the left wing of the Piper and struck the propeller….

At 1625 eastern time, a Beech A36 struck trees during an approach to Atlantic City International Airport. The pilot was killed. The pilot made two attempts to shoot the ILS Rwy 13 approach. During the first approach, the controller issued vectors numerous times to assist the pilot in intercepting the localizer. The airplane descended well below the glideslope and the controller twice issued climb instructions. During the missed approach, the controller offered a surveillance approach, which the pilot accepted. As the airplane was being vectored, the pilot requested another try at the ILS. During the second approach, the pilot passed through the localizer and the controller elected to initiat…

At about 0920 eastern time, a Cessna 172S collided with a parked airplane while taxiing at the Melbourne Regional Airport. The student pilot was not injured. The pilot said he received his taxi clearance and released the parking brake. The airplane began to roll forward and he applied the airplanes brakes to perform a brake check, but the brakes were ineffective. The airplane rolled forward and collided with a parked twin. Several witnesses said they heard the engine operating at high power before the impact….

At about 1600 eastern time, a Piper PA-28-180 crashed after a loss of control near Conesus, killing the flight instructor and the pilot undergoing model familiarization training. The airplane was operated by a Dansville flying club. A different instructor had begun the checkout earlier in the day. A witness said the airplane pitched up to the point where it appeared the pilot was attempting a loop, then the left wing dropped and the airplane spiraled to the ground. The flight instructor had logged 1,097 hours and the pilot receiving instruction had logged 146 hours….

At about 1415 central time, a Cessna 152 crashed short of the runway at Olive Branch Airport when the flight instructor intentionally shut off the fuel as part of engine-out training. Neither occupant was injured. The instructor said he moved the fuel selector to the OFF position when the airplane was abeam the numbers on downwind. The student ran through the emergency procedures, but the engine did not restart when the fuel selector was returned to ON. The pilots did not immediately turn to the runway because of traffic on final, but flew a normal pattern. The airplane landed short and the nose gear collapsed, damaging the airplane….

At about 1230 mountain time, a Beech A36 struck a fence and terrain during a takeoff attempt from runway 21 at Sedona. The flight instructor, the pilot taking instruction and a passenger were killed. Several witnesses said the airplane did not seem to accelerate and was rolling very slowly with partial flaps deployed as it passed the midfield point. The airplane was still on the ground about 4,000 feet down the 5,132-foot runway. The airplane reached an altitude of only a few feet before crashing off the departure end….

At 1512 eastern time, a homebuilt Minimax 1500R was damaged during a forced landing at Trenton-Robbinsville Airport. The pilot suffered minor injuries. The pilot said it was the airplanes inaugural flight. He had previously made high-speed taxi tests that involved short periods of being airborne. After initial takeoff, he stayed in the traffic pattern and did one landing. He then climbed to 2,500 feet and continued flight testing. He then returned to the traffic pattern. The first two approaches resulted in go-arounds. On the third approach, the airplane ballooned and he applied power to go around again. The airplane would not develop enough power to maintain altitude, and the airplane cras…