Preliminary Reports

At about 1430 eastern time, a Mooney M20R crashed during an attempted go-around at East Cooper Airport. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said he approached slightly fast, touched down a third of the way down the runway, and bounced. He added power and raised the flaps and the airplane yawed left and hit the ground. A witness said the airplane initially struck nosewheel first and porpoised three or four times before the pilot attempted the go-around….

At about 1450 eastern time, a Rockwell Commander 112TC ditched into the Atlantic Ocean about 10 to 12 miles east of Stuart, Fla., apparently after running out of fuel. The two occupants were not injured. The pilot departed Daytona Beach for Marsh Harbour, Bahamas, where he added 10 gallons of fuel to get him back to Fort Pierce, Fla. He declared a fuel problem at 1446 and ditched the airplane four minutes later. The pilot said he did not measure the fuel aboard at any time, but had estimated it based on a visual inspection of the fuel level relative to the metal tabs. The owner of the airplane indicated the accident pilot had not properly calculated fuel consumption at the power and mixture…

At approximately 2030 mountain time, a Grumman G-164B lost engine power and crashed after a spray run near Shelley. The pilot suffered minor injuries. Post-crash examination revealed the top of the No. 5 cylinder had separated. The pilot said the Pratt & Whitney R-985 engine had been overhauled within the previous 100 hours….

At about 1830 eastern time, an unregistered KitFox airplane crashed in the traffic pattern at a private airstrip near Sprakers. The unlicensed pilot, who was killed, had just completed construction of the aircraft. A witness said they were performing taxi tests and fixed a minor squawk, after which the pilot said he was going to go for it. The airplane did four right traffic patterns, with rough engine sounds and severe pitch oscillations evident throughout. The first pattern was a low pass. The next two involved go-arounds after bounced landings. On the fourth the left wing hit the ground and the airplane stopped. They determined the wing was not damaged and adjusted the carburetor. The p…

At about 1200 Pacific time, an amateur-built Mustang M-11 suffered a propeller blade failure during cruise and made a forced landing on a dry lake bed near Pahrump. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot said he experienced a propeller blade failure, with about 21 inches of the aluminum two-bladed McCauley fixed pitch prop separated. The resultant imbalance left the engine hanging by one 3/8-inch bolt….

At approximately 0930 Pacific time, a Cessna 172N struck power lines and crashed near Otis, killing the pilot and passenger. Witnesses said the airplane was cruising low over the Salmon Creek inlet when it executed an abrupt climbing left turn as it approached power lines spanning the creek. The power lines were suspended about 60 feet high. The airplane then crashed on a sandbar exposed by low tide….

At about 1100 eastern time, a Piper J3-C65 crashed during a training exercise near Trinca Airport. The flight instructor was seriously injured and the pilot-rated student suffered minor injuries. The pilot was undergoing tailwheel training and was on initial climb after a touch-and-go when the instructor pulled power to simulate an engine failure. The instructor urged the pilot to lower the nose, but the pilot continued to slow the airplane until it stalled and spun into a cornfield….

At 1914 mountain time, a Beech 95-B55 landed hard on runway 22L at Falcon Field Airport, collapsing the right main landing gear. The pilot was not injured. A special weather report was issued four minutes earlier, showing the winds at 150-degrees at 18 knots, gusting to 28; with blowing dust. Controllers advised the pilot of the winds four times during the approach. The pilot said he touched down and the airplane was caught by a gust of wind. He added power to go around and was slammed back down on the runway….

At 2155 central time, a Piper PA-28-161 suffered an inflight fire during a night cross-country flight. The pilot landed the airplane on Interstate 35 near Purcell without hitting anything, but all four occupants suffered minor injuries during the accident. The fire apparently started under and behind one of the passenger seats. The fire consumed the fuselage and cabin….

At about 1525 eastern time, a landing Waco UPF-7 collided with a Kitfox that was backtaxiing on the runway at Moraine Airpark. The pilot and two passengers in the Waco received minor injuries, while the pilot in the Kitfox was not injured. The Kitfox pilot said he landed in the grass next to runway 26. He then taxied east in the grass and looked down the runway and saw no traffic. He then announced on the CTAF that he was backtaxiing on runway 26, but when he entered the runway he was struck by the Waco, which was on its landing roll. The Waco was not equipped with a radio….