Preliminary Reports

At 0917 mountain time, a Cessna 172S veered off runway 01 during landing and struck a taxiing Cessna 172N at Glendale Municipal Airport. None of the four occupants of the two airplanes was injured. The pilot of the landing airplane said he completed air work in the local practice area and returned for landing. Upon landing, the airplane bounced, veered to the left, and exited the runway about midfield between a taxiway and the high-speed taxiway. It crossed a gravel area between the runway and a parallel taxiway and struck the oncoming airplane. Each airplanes left wing tip contacted the left wing root of the opposing airplane….

At about 1020 eastern time, a Beech BE-23 crashed in a residential neighborhood after buzzing a house near King George. The pilot and two passengers were killed. A witness said the pilot routinely flew around the house. On this occasion, the airplane circled twice then dove straight toward the house at high power. It cleared the roof of the house by 25 to 30 feet and then struck trees….

At approximately 1930 central time, an unregistered Golden Circle Air T-Bird crashed while maneuvering near Newellton. The non-certificated pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot said they were flying at 400 feet agl when he decided to show the passenger a series of stalls. During the second power-off stall the airplane entered a left spin. When recovery from the spin was unsuccessful, the pilot released control of the airplane so the aircraft could recover on its own. The airplane crashed in an open field. The pilot added that as far as I knew the airplane was spin resistant….

At about 16:10 central time, a Beech 55 crashed after takeoff from Montgomery Regional Airport. The pilot and two passengers were killed. One witness said one of the engines sounded like it was running smooth and the other engine sounded like it was sputtering during taxi. On the takeoff roll, he said both engines sounded erratic and he wondered why the pilot did not abort the takeoff. The airplane did not appear to climb very fast and disappeared into the clouds, then crashed shortly thereafter. Another witness verified the rough-sounding engines, saying he told others at the time, Theres no way I would be on an airplane sounding like that. Just after a minute after takeoff, the pilot ra…

At about 1505 mountain time, a Grob G120A making a maintenance test flight crashed while maneuvering near Mobile, killing the pilot. A witness said the airplane was flying fast and low at a 90-degree left bank. The nose pitched toward the ground, then the wings leveled as the airplane struck the ground….

At about 0542 eastern time, a Cessna 206H went off the pavement while taxiing for takeoff at Sarasota/Bradenton International Airport. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said he became distracted in the darkness and missed the turn onto the runway. The aircraft ran off the end of the taxiway into the sand and grass airport infield area, where the nose gear and propeller collided with a concrete wiring junction box….

At about 0800 eastern time, a Ted Smith Aerostar crashed near Belle Glade, leaving the pilot with serious injuries. The pilot said he was aware of reported thunderstorms along his route of flight and near the departure airport. He said he stayed low to avoid clouds, but saw a hole in the clouds and climbed through. When he reached 13,000 feet, he noticed that he was very close to a storm, so he turned the airplane 180 degrees, but flew directly into a storm cell. The turbulence of the storm caused the airplane to go into an uncontrolled dive. He was able to level the wings and pull the nose up just before impact with the ground….

At 15:16 mountain time, a Schleicher ASW-24E glider crashed just south of the departure runway at West Texas Airport, seriously injuring the pilot. The tow pilot said the towrope broke at about 100 feet agl with about 5,000 feet of runway remaining. Instead of landing straight ahead, the glider began a turn to the right, with the bank estimated to be at least 90 degrees. The gliders left wing hit the dirt during the turn….

At about 1930 eastern time, a Piper PA-28R-200 struck trees during a forced landing near Fredericksburg. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot said he was approaching Shannon Airport and decided to switch the fuel from LEFT to RIGHT. The engine quit. Examination of the wreckage revealed the fuel selector was in the OFF position, but it was unknown if the fuel selector was moved by emergency response crews. Additionally, when the fuel selector was moved from LEFT to RIGHT, the selector contacted a sheet metal screw that felt similar to the selector being secured into the RIGHT detent. However, at that point, fuel flow would not have been possible….

At 18:50 eastern time, a Cessna 401A suffered an in-flight fire during cruise flight, but the pilot made a safe landing. No one was injured. The airplane was at 6,000 feet with the combustion heater on when the pilot heard an explosion. Smoke then entered the cabin and the airplane lost all electrical power. The pilot did not declare an emergency and landed without incident at Eastern West Virginia Regional/Shepard Airport. The airplane had a total time of 5,231 hours and the combustion heater was subject to an AD for inspections every 250 hours and overhauls every 1,000 hours. The heater had been rebuilt about 1,300 flight hours earlier, but the heaters Hobbs meter was destroyed and the ti…