Accidents

Investigators at the site of the January 26 crash of a Sikorsky S-76 helicopter—which claimed the lives of basketball legend Kobe Bryant, his young daughter and seven others—said the aircraft missed clearing the hill it struck near Calabasas, California, by some 30 feet. National Transportation Safety Board investigator Bill English made a point during a […]

A simple ILS approach ends in an unexplained disaster.

The Aviation Safety Network, an arm of the Flight Safety Foundation, reported 2019 was still one of the industry’s safest, despite the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max in March that claimed 157 lives. Last year wasn’t accident-free, however. ASN says 20 airline accidents around the world claimed 283 lives. Even when accounting […]

While it is still too early to draw any final conclusions about what brought down the Pilatus PC-12 this past Thanksgiving weekend, the NTSB’s preliminary report published December 18 does highlight some disturbing facts about the single-engine turboprop’s short flight after it departed Chamberlin Municipal Airport, South Dakota (9V9). The accident killed the pilot and […]

Viewing the Manhattan skyline from any vantage point is impressive, but when seen from aloft the Big Apple skyline becomes a breathtaking experience. In March 2018, a New York tour operator launched an Airbus AS350 helicopter with a pilot and five passengers for what was expected to be a 30-minute dusk flight near the East […]

This year’s Thanksgiving holiday weekend turned tragic on Saturday, November 30, when a Pilatus PC-12–N56KJ–carrying 12 people crashed into a cornfield shortly after takeoff from Chamberlin Municipal Airport (9V9), approximately 50 miles southeast of Pierre, South Dakota. The aircraft was destined for Idaho Falls, Idaho. All aboard were members of the same Idaho family. Nine […]

Two pilots from Vance Air Force Base in Enid, Oklahoma, died after their T-38 Talon crashed during a training exercise. Col. Corey Simmons, commander of the 71st Flying Training Wing at Vance Air Force Base, said the “aircraft mishap” happened during the landing phase of a formation training flight. Two T-38 Talons were involved in […]

Following an accident on Southwest Airlines (SWA) Flight 1380 in April 2018 that resulted in the death of passenger Jennifer Riordan, the National Transportation Safety Board announced the probable cause during a public board meeting held last week. A fractured fan blade from a CFM International CFM-56-7B engine, powering a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700, led […]

The NTSB last week said its preliminary data showed U.S. civil aviation deaths in 2018 rose from the 347 reported in 2017 to 393 last year with most of those 2018 fatalities occurring in general aviation operations. General aviation was in fact responsible for 1,275 accidents in 2018 that included 381 of the fatalities, fully […]

As the Collings Foundation’s crippled B-17, N93012, was approaching Runway 6 at Bradley Windsor Locks, Connecticut, a few weeks ago, the crew was already desperately pressed for altitude to try and align the World War II bomber with the runway for landing. Shortly after takeoff from Runway 6 just minutes before, the airplane never climbed […]