Aviation Safety

At 18:59 CDT, a Cessna 182A jump plane crashed and burned shortly after takeoff from Coulter Field Airport. The pilot and four parachutists were killed. Witnesses said the airplane climbed to about 300 to 400 feet agl, then banked right and nosed down. One witness said the aircraft made one complete turn before it descended from his view. The engine was sent to the manufacturer for a detailed examination….

At 15:00 EST, a Mooney M20J was damaged during a forced landing near New Milford. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said the airplane had experienced a propeller strike in September, and the engine was sent to the manufacturer for a teardown inspection. On the day of the accident the pilot arrived at Danbury to see if the airplane was ready to be flown after having the original engine and a new three bladed propeller installed. The engine had been test run for 0.4 hours without producing any leaks or anomalies. The pilot completed extensive run-up checks and was cleared for departure. The takeoff was uneventful, and the pilot executed a closed traffic pattern to a touch-and-go. He depar…

At about 17:50 EDT, the pilot of a Cessna 182R was killed when the plane struck a communications tower near Killingworth. IMC prevailed and an IFR flight plan had been filed. The airplane was issued a clearance to execute the VOR approach to Chester Airport at 17:43 and the pilot acknowledged the clearance and canceled IFR. The aircraft struck a tower that reached to 866 feet msl, located about 2.6 miles from the airport. A witness who recorded the condition of the tower lighting daily stated that fog obscured the top of the tower at the time of the accident….

At 18:00 CDT, a Bellanca 8KCAB Super Decathlon crashed near Atlanta, killing the pilot and seriously injuring the passenger. A witness said the pilot performed a loop, immelman, a couple of hammerhead stalls and a couple of rolls and returned to the airport. The witness said that the airplane then approached from the north in what I call a crop duster pass. At the end of the strip, he pulled the airplane up approximately 20-degrees to 25-degrees pitch and started a turn to the left. The aircraft banked left sharply and descended uncontrolled….

At 12:10 PST, an experimental KR-2 lost engine power and crashed on top of a car in a parking lot in Moreno Valley. The pilot suffered minor injuries. The flight originated at Chino about four hours before the accident. The wings were removed from the airplane to facilitate recovery. The airplane was tipped on each side to capture the remaining fuel. Approximately 1 quart of fuel was drained from the left wing tank, and approximately 10 tablespoons were drained from the right wing tank….

At about 05:45 EDT, a Raytheon BE-200 crashed near Williamstown, killing both pilots aboard. The pilot contacted the Burlington Flight Service Station for an IFR clearance and was cleared to maintain 5,000, expect FL220 one zero minutes after departure. The pilot read back the clearance correctly and departed. Shortly after takeoff, the airplane was in contact with Albany approach and transmitted, uh, you want us at 2,200? The airplane crashed on Mount Berlin at about 2,300 feet….

At 12:58 CDT, a Beech A36TC Bonanza struck trees while attempting a go around at the Franklinton Airport, killing the pilot and his three passengers. The pilot intended to fly IFR from Baton Rouge to Montgomery, Ala., and had taken off about 20 minutes before the accident. The airplane was in cruise flight when the pilot requested vectors to the nearest airport because of an engine overheating problem. Houston Center vectored him to Franklinton and terminated radar services soon after the vector was issued. A witness said the plane came in high and fast toward the runway. Several witnesses saw the airplane flying over runway 31 with the landing gear extended, at a steady altitude estimated…

At about 20:35 EST, a Beech E-90 crashed during an ASR approach to runway 24 at Beaufort County Airport. The pilot was killed and the copilot was seriously injured. The flight originated from Hilton Head about 13 minutes before the accident. The copilot said they were cleared for the approach on about a six-mile final. The pilot was flying on the instruments, and the copilot was scanning outside and handling the radios. They broke out of the clouds at about 900 feet and were descending at about 480 feet per minute. The ceiling was overcast, ragged and very dark, with no visible horizon. The copilot said he could see some lights but could not see the airport. He looked back inside the cockpit…

At 10:30 CDT, a Champion 7FC struck its right wing on the ground while landing on a private turf airstrip near Powderly. The pilot suffered serious injuries. The pilot said the springs had been removed from the tailwheel assembly and the airplane was uncontrollable during the landing roll. The pilots total flight time was 700 hours, of which 30 hours were in the accident aircraft….

At about 11:39 PDT, a Cessna 177A ditched in Big Bear Lake after losing power. The aircraft was substantially damaged but the pilot was uninjured. The airplane was on a maintenance test flight when the accident occurred. The airplane had not been run for several months when the pilot made an initial test flight, at which time the engine missed and ran roughly. This was the second maintenance test flight after the period of disuse. When the engine quit, the pilot ditched the airplane in shallow water about 50 yards from shore. The pilot crawled out of the cockpit and onto the wing of the aircraft, and waited there until rescued by boaters who had witnessed the accident….