Aviation Safety

At approximately 16:15 mountain time, a Cessna 337B struck a power line and crashed in St. George. The pilot was killed. The ferry flight originated in Mesquite, Nev., approximately 20 minutes earlier. The interior of the airplane, including avionics and some instruments, had been removed with refurbishing scheduled at a later date. The fuel selector panel and handles were also removed. The pilot flew the airplane to Mesquite in February 2001, where it had been repainted. He was ferrying the airplane back to St. George when the accident occurred. Prior to takeoff, he requested that 15 gallons of fuel be added to each side. The airplane was next seen on a left base leg for runway 34, but th…

At 13:22 central time, a Beech C90 made a forced landing in a residential area after losing engine power while on approach to Dallas Love Airport. The pilot was seriously injured. The airplane apparently left Dallas in the morning with four passengers. Line personnel in Taos, N.M., reported the airplane landed there and two people deplaned, leaving the airplane empty except for the pilot. The pilot reported that as he turned on the base leg to runway 13L the right engine began to surge. He retracted the gear and turned on the boost pumps, but the airplane was slowing to Vmc, so he reduced power to the left engine and made the forced landing….

At 13:40 central time, a Beech BE-70 lost power in its right engine during initial takeoff climb and made a forced landing near College Station. The pilot and eight passengers were not injured. The pilot said the right engine started losing power at about 150 feet agl. He decided to land on the remaining runway and lowered the gear, but then the engine regained power. He decided to proceed and raised the gear, but within a few seconds the right engine lost all power. The pilot executed a gear-up forced landing to a grassy area between two roads a half-mile north of the runway….

At 18:16 eastern time, a Cessna 172S was destroyed by an explosion and fire after the pilot shut down the engine on the taxiway at Leesburg Executive Airport. The pilot was seriously injured. The pilot said he was flying to a nearby airport to pick up a passenger and return. The aircraft had been loaded for a departure the next day to make a fishing trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The airplane was loaded with fishing gear, camping gear and 15 gallons of 100LL avgas in four, five-gallon cans. The fuel cans and the gear were secured under a cargo net in the airplane two days prior to the accident. The pilot said he taxied to the runup area and got an overwhelming fuel smell. He shut…

At 17:30 central time, a Grumman American AA-1B lost power on initial climb from Williams Memorial Airport and crashed, killing the pilot. A witness said the airplane began a shallow climb after takeoff. When it was at about 90 to 100 feet agl, the engine lost power, regained partial power and then lost power again. The witness saw the airplanes nose lower and the airplane made an abrupt steep right bank past 90 degrees and crashed….

At 18:30 eastern time, a Cessna 182 lost engine power and was damaged in the ensuing forced landing, leaving the pilot with minor injuries. The pilot said he departed at about 16:45 on a cross-country trip. He set power and leaned the engine to about 11.5 gph. After about 2 hours, 15 minutes of flight, the engine lost power. He reported the loss of power on 121.5 and another pilot helped the pilot troubleshoot the problem. The pilot checked the magnetos, turned the carburetor heat ON and checked the fuel selector, which was in the Both position. The pilot ensured that the primer was locked and set the mixture to full rich, the throttle to full open, and the boost pump to ON. The pilot…

At about 21:37 eastern time, a Cessna T210F crashed on Pinnacle Mountain near Hendersonville while being vectored for an ILS approach to Asheville. VMC prevailed and an IFR flight plan was filed. The pilot was killed. The airplane was cruising at 9,000 feet when the controller issued a vector for the approach and cleared the pilot to descend to 6,000 feet. The pilot reported precipitation and turbulence and was unable to hold altitude within a few hundred feet. The controller told the pilot he had descended below the MVA and that his heading was off course. Soon the pilot was flying 100 degrees to the right of the assigned heading, airspeed had increased dramatically and the airplane was bel…

At 08:28 eastern time a Cessna 172N flipped inverted while taxiing after landing at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport. The pilot was not injured. The airplane had just arrived on an IFR flight from Atlanta, Ga., and landed on runway 32. While taxiing after landing, a gust of wind flipped the airplane. Winds were reported at 340 at 45 knots, gusting to 60….

At about 07:45 mountain time, a Cessna 172L crashed into a house and burned in Tucson, killing the pilot. The flight had taken off from La Cholla Airpark, a private residential airport, in violation of flight restrictions against VFR flight. The airplane was detected by Tucson Approach and the controller transmitted in the blind, telling the pilot to return to the point of origin. The pilot did not respond but the airplane reversed course and the transponder code changed from 1233 to 1203. About six miles south of the departure airport, the airplane crashed into the house….

At about 13:10 eastern time, a Beech C-45H Expeditor crashed during a forced landing in Hudson. The pilot, flight instructor and passenger received minor injuries. The owner, piloting from the left seat, was undergoing a flight review. While in a climb at about 2,000 feet msl, the left engine began to shake. As the instructor reached for the engine failure checklist, the pilot feathered the wrong engine. The pilot said he froze at the controls and was not familiar with the air restart procedures, which required access to buttons the instructor could not reach. The airplane came down on a golf course. The pilot had 872 multi hours, but only 55 in make and model….