Preliminary Reports

At about 20:17 eastern time, a Beech 36 descended into the Atlantic Ocean near Tybee Island while on a flight from Ormond Beach, Fla., to Williamston, N.C. The pilot and three passengers were killed. The flight was receiving flight following at an altitude of 5,500 feet when radar and radio contact with the flight was lost. Radar data showed the flight made a descending right turn from 5,500 feet and was lost from radar at 2,900 feet….

At approximately 02:45 UTC, a Pilatus PC-12/45 flying from Hakodate, Japan, to Magadan, Russia, lost engine power and was ditched in the ocean. The pilot sustained minor injuries and the three passengers were uninjured. The pilot said he was cruising at 8,100 meters when the engine failed. The aircraft descended through multiple cloud layers, breaking out 100 feet above the ocean, which had 8- to 12-foot swells. He ditched the aircraft and all four occupants boarded a life raft. About 15 hours later they were picked up by a Russian container ship….

At 23:15 central time, a passenger was seriously injured after walking into the propeller blade of a De Havilland, DHC-6 Twin Otter after the airplane landed at the Sky Dive Chicago Airport. The pilot and additional five passengers were not injured. Witnesses said the aircraft was stopped on the ramp and the pilot was in the process of shutting down the engines when a passenger departed from the airplane, went toward the front of the airplane, and was struck by a rotating propeller….

At about 09:50 Pacific time, a Piper PA-32R-300 struck a mountain at the 4,800-foot msl level 15 miles south/southeast of Essex, killing the pilot and passenger. The accident site was 34 miles south-southwest of the departure airport. The airport is in a valley and it was clear overhead; however, the mountain tops were obscured above 4,000 feet in dark clouds in all directions. The accident site was on a steep, rocky, desert mountain slope about 100 feet below a local peak. The wreckage was lying at the base of a vertical rock face and there was shiny aluminum debris embedded in the rock face about 50 feet above the resting location of the wreckage….

At approximately 14:40 mountain time a Piper PA-32-300 crashed while landing at Angel Fire Airport. The two occupants were uninjured. The airplane touched down 4,500 feet down the 8,900-foot runway 35, drifted to the right and struck a snow bank at the 5,900-foot mark. It then became airborne. The pilot flew north, turned around and landed on runway 17, touching down 2,750 feet from the end and skidding to a halt 1,800 feet from the end. The nose landing gear collapsed, buckling the firewall. Winds were reported from 260 degrees at 20 knots, gusting to 30 knots….

At about 05:55 eastern time, a Cessna 182P crashed into Lake Ontario near Oswego, killing the pilot. The pilot was en route from Holley, N.Y., to Rochester when he buzzed some fishing boats two or three times at low level. During the last low pass the left wing struck the water. A friend of the pilot said the two had flown the airplane late the night before, then went to a nightclub until 03:00. At 04:15 the pilot decided to fly the airplane back to Rochester so it would be there at 8 a.m. The friend added that the pilot buzzed his house at 5 a.m. to make him aware he was on his way back to Rochester….

At 12:58 eastern time, a Grumman American AA-1C struck the ground while on approach to South Jersey Regional Airport, killing both occupants. The flight had originated from Northeast Philadelphia Airport 13 minutes earlier. A witness in another airplane reported seeing the accident airplane making a turn from downwind to base in excess of 60 degrees of bank, followed by a 2-turn spin to the ground. The pilots logbook reported 319 total hours, with 4 hours in the preceding 90 days….

At about 16:30 eastern time, a homebuilt Lancair IV crashed and burned shortly after takeoff from Kissimmee Municipal Airport, killing the pilot. A witness saw the airplane about a mile south of runway 24. He heard the engine sputter and saw the airplane turn back toward the airport. The airplane banked about 90 degrees and crashed nose low….

At about 16:00 eastern time, a Piper PA-34-200T was damaged during landing at Northeast Philadelphia Airport. The flight instructor and pilot were not injured. The flight instructor said the two checked the gear several times during the approach and followed the prelanding checklist. After a smooth landing, the airplane was rolling to a stop when the right main landing gear collapsed. The airplane veered to the right, and the right wing struck a runway light and the nose gear collapsed. A witness said all three wheels appeared down at the time of landing….

At about 16:40 eastern time, a Cessna T206H lost engine power and was ditched in Lake Lanier. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot said he was being vectored by ATC while on an IFR flight plan when he heard a bang and felt a vibration. He declared an emergency and got vectors to the nearest airport, but couldnt reach it, so he elected to ditch the airplane in the lake. The airplane flipped inverted but both occupants made it out of the passenger window….