Preliminary Reports

At about 16:20 EDT, a North American T6-G Texan hit trees on while on approach to a private grass runway, killing the pilot and giving the passenger minor injuries. A witness said the landing gear struck the tops of the trees. The passenger told investigators that the approach seemed lower than usual. Investigators did not find any pre-impact malfunctions of the airframe or engine….

At about 16:30 EDT, a Piper Super Cub crashed on Saddle Island, killing the pilot. A witness said the pilot called him about 45 minutes before the accident asking if he wanted to go flying, but the he refused because he was on his boat. The pilot told him he would fly by to say hello. When the airplane appeared, the witness waved at the pilot, the pilot waved in return, and the airplane climbed to the west. About 1 minute later the airplane came over the north tip of the island on a southerly heading. The witness said the airplane was low and slow, about tree top level. The tail clipped a tree and the airplane crashed into the trees….

At 16:00 CDT, two Beech D-45s (T-34s), part of the Lima Lima Flying Squadron, collided during a practice flight. One aircraft crashed, killing the pilot. The other was damaged but made a safe landing at Aurora Municipal Airport. The airplanes were part of a six-ship delta formation performing a non-aerobatic maneuver called a pop top break….

At 12:30 CST, a Cessna 172N struck trees while maneuvering near Springhill. The pilot received minor injuries. IMC prevailed at the time of the accident. The pilot said he had been hunting deer on his property earlier that morning and had wounded a deer. He decided to search for the wounded deer using his airplane. He was flying over his property at 300 feet agl with 10 degrees of flaps extended when the airplane struck two oak trees. A weather observation facility 33 miles away reported the wind from 010 at 11 knots, 1.5 miles visibility in heavy rain showers and mist, overcast ceilings at 300 feet agl, temperature 50 degrees and dewpoint 48 degrees….

At 11:46 CDT, a Cessna P210N crashed following a go around at the Spicewood Airport, killing the pilot and passenger. Witnesses said the airplane came in very fast on final for runway 17 and floated about a third of the way down the runway length. During the flare, the airplane ballooned about 50-75 feet in the air and lost speed. With about a third of the runway left, the right wing dropped, power was applied and the airplane began an uncoordinated turn to the right. The witnesses said the airplane appeared to be near a stall as it continued its turn to the northeast. The airplane crashed within one mile of the airport….

At about 17:10 EDT, a Beech A23 Sundowner was damaged in a forced landing in a field short of runway 28 in Carlisle. The two occupants were not injured. The pilot said he flew a visual approach to the runway, but traffic on the runway led him to make a go around. During the go around, the engine sputtered, but he flew a normal traffic pattern. While on final, the aircraft lost all power. The pilot said that after the landing, he moved the fuel selector from Left to Off. Investigators found that the left fuel tank was empty and the right fuel tank contained 18 gallons….

At approximately 11:25 PDT, an unregistered Bell 47 helicopter crashed four miles southeast of Benton City, killing the pilot. The flight, reported to have been a maintenance test flight, originated from the owners residence earlier in the morning. A witness reported hearing a pop-pop sound and then observed a column of smoke coming from the accident site. No aircraft registration or identification could be established for the helicopter, nor could any flight credentials be established for the owner….

At about 16:35 EST, an Israel 1124A crashed near Gouldsboro. The two pilots and a passenger were killed. The flight departed Seattle en route for Teterboro, N.J. As the flight began its descent to TEB, it was instructed to cross the Wilkes-Barre VOR at 18,000 feet, which the flight crew acknowledged. The flight was then instructed to cross the MUGZY intersection at 6,000 feet. The flight crew acknowledged the clearance and made no further transmissions. Examination of the crash site revealed the airplane struck the ground at about an 80-degree nose-down, wings level attitude. All of the airplanes major components and flight control surfaces were located at the accident site. Examination of…

At 07:51 EDT, a Cessna 401B crashed after an aborted takeoff at Essex County Airport. Three passengers were seriously injured; the pilot and four passengers also received minor injuries. The pilot said the initial takeoff roll was uneventful, and that he planned rotation at 105 mph indicated. However, the airplane accelerated to about 80 mph and then did not appear to accelerate further. About two-thirds of the way down the runway, he decided to abort the takeoff. The airplane skidded off the right side of the runway near the departure end, continued over a berm, and dropped into a ravine. When the airplane was lifted out of the ravine, the pitot covers were found still on the pitot tubes an…

At about 06:45 PDT, a Cessna 182J struck trees while trying to land at McBeth Airport. The pilot suffered minor injuries and the passenger was uninjured. The flight was made VFR but IMC prevailed and no flight plan was made. The pilot said he descended from cruise altitude to 1,500 feet and could not spot the airport, so he decided to fly west toward the coast, climb and proceed to his alternate. The engine began to run rough and he could not remedy the problem or maintain altitude, so he turned toward the airport as directed by his GPS receiver. He was at 500 feet and on top of the fog layer when he saw the runway numbers below him through the fog, so he turned back toward the runway. Durin…