Preliminary Reports

At 17:20 eastern time, a Cessna 172 went off the runway while landing at Pennridge Airport. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said the setting sun hindered visibility out the windshield as he approached runway 26. As he flared, the sun was directly in his face and the glared turned the airplanes crazed windshield milky white and made forward visibility impossible. The airplane bounced several times, bending the firewall and floorboard of the airplane….

At 18:28 Pacific time, a Piper PA-28-140 and a Piper PA-46-310P collided on runway 16R. No one was injured. The Malibu pilot was cleared to land and advised there would be traffic departing before his arrival. The controller then cleared the Cherokee to taxi into position and hold at intersection 13F and advised the pilot of a Malibu three and a half miles out. The Malibu pilot reported being on final and was again cleared to land. The Cherokee was still holding in position when the Malibu came up from behind….

At about 21:02 eastern time, a Cessna 152 crashed while in cruise flight near Middlefield, killing the pilot. The pilot was returning from a dinner engagement when the airplane crashed into an upsloping wooded area at an elevation of 483 feet msl. The pilot had flown 16 miles from Chester, Conn., to Meriden in order to attend a dinner engagement in New Haven. Afterward, he reportedly was heading directly back to Chester, however a route to Chester would have been on a 128-degree heading and the accident site was six miles from Meriden on a 064 heading. The pilot apparently did not obtain a weather briefing. Visibility at Chester at the time of the accident was 3 miles, with broken clouds at…

At about 08:55 eastern time, a Cessna 172P struck concrete columns at McGhee Tyson Airport. Neither occupant was injured. The pilot said he started the engine and realized a chock was still in place on the right main wheel. He set the parking brake and left the cockpit to remove the chock. Once he removed it, the airplane taxied forward and the wings struck two concrete columns….

At approximately 21:16 mountain time, the pilot of a Cessna TR182 and his passenger were killed following a loss of control in flight about two miles north of Dixie. The VFR flight had been in the air 3.5 hours, destined for Boise, when the pilot told controllers he had lost his engine. As he executed the forced landing, the airplane crashed into rolling terrain in a sparsely populated area. The landowner had initiated a controlled burn in the area earlier in the day, and there were numerous smoldering areas near the crash site, but there was no post-crash fire….

At about 05:20 central time, a Beech 58 on a Part 135 charter flight landed gear-up at Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport. The pilot and two occupants were uninjured. The flight departed the airport and the cabin door came ajar. The pilot landed and closed the door. The flight again departed and the cabin door popped open again. When the pilot returned for another landing, he neglected to lower the landing gear….

At 07:05 eastern time, a line employee was seriously injured while attempting to hand-prop a Cessna 172N at Hanover County Municipal Airport. The airplane was not damaged. The airplanes starter did not work, so the line employee attempted to hand-prop the engine. During the attempt, the propeller fractured his left arm….

At 21:20 central time a Piper PA-30 lost power and struck transmission lines during the ensuing forced landing near Ozona. The pilot and one passenger suffered minor injuries and two passengers were seriously injured. The pilot had flown from Fort Worth to Lajitas, where the three passengers boarded the airplane. Fuel was not available at Lajitas, so the pilot took off and decided to land at Ozona Municipal Airport for fuel. The left engine lost power in the descent and the pilot secured the engine. He tried to activate the airport lights, but could not. He circled the area of the airport looking for the runway for 10 to 15 minutes and the right engine quit, so he landed in a parking lot, st…

At 12:50 eastern time, a North American SNJ-6 collided on the ground with a Cessna 172R after landing at Kissimmee Municipal Airport. The Cessna landed on runway 6 and cleared the runway at taxiway Delta. The ground controller advised the Cessna pilot to hold there momentarily. Meanwhile, the Texan landed on runway 6 and was advised by the controller to follow the Cessna. The pilot of the Texan reported that the Cessna was in sight and turned off the runway onto taxiway Delta. The pilot of the Texan then lost sight of the Cessna, and the Texans propeller subsequently collided with the tail of the Cessna. The Texan sustained minor damage, and the Cessnas empennage was destroyed….

At about 09:08 mountain time, a Bellanca 7ECA collided on the ground with a Mooney M20A at Chandler Municipal Airport. The Mooney was stopped in the runup area when the Bellanca attempted to taxi around it. The Bellancas propeller struck the Mooneys wing. No one was injured….