At 1440 eastern time, a Cessna 172 crashed into a field when it failed to climb after takeoff from Hampton Roads Airport. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot, a flight instructor, said she had spend 1 hours cleaning snow from the airplane before attempting to take off. She said she cleared the leading edges but decided the snow of top of the wings would blow off during taxi. As the airplane reached 300 feet, however, the stall horn went off and the pilot attempted to return to the airport. During the turn, the airplane landed hard in a field. A witness, who is a Designated Pilot Examiner, said the airplane was covered with up to 4 inches of snow and ice as the airplane taxied to the runway. At the accident site, there was still about -inch of ice and snow on the wings.
January 18, Chesapeake, Va. / Cessna 172
At 1440 eastern time, a Cessna 172 crashed into a field when it failed to climb after takeoff from Hampton Roads Airport. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot, a flight instructor, said she had spend 1 hours cleaning snow from the airplane before attempting to take off. She said she cleared the leading edges but decided the snow of top of the wings would blow off during taxi. As the airplane reached 300 feet, however, the stall horn went off and the pilot attempted to return to the airport. During the turn, the airplane landed hard in a field. A witness, who is a Designated Pilot Examiner, said the airplane was covered with up to 4 inches of snow and ice as the airplane taxie...
Key Takeaways:
- A Cessna 172 crashed shortly after takeoff from Hampton Roads Airport when it failed to climb, resulting in no injuries to the pilot or passenger.
- The flight instructor pilot knowingly attempted to take off with snow remaining on top of the wings, expecting it to blow off during taxi, despite having cleared the leading edges.
- The aircraft stalled at 300 feet, with witness accounts and post-crash inspection confirming significant snow and ice on the wings contributed to the loss of lift.
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