Ercoupe

In 1948, living in New Jersey, I wanted very much to get into flying. My inquiries led me to Secaucus (now a metropolis in its own right, 10 minutes from New York City), where I found the Dawn Patrol seaplane base located on the Hackensack River. The owner-operator was a veteran Navy pilot, who just a […]

The airplane landed hard during a forced landing at about 0910 Pacific time, sustaining substantial damage to its right wing and firewall. The private pilot sustained minor injuries. Visual conditions prevailed; a VFR flight plan had been filed.

According to the pilot, after landing he taxied the airplane to the general aviation tiedown area on the airport. The pilot stated that he normally taxis the airplane through the open space between the second and third tiedown rows on the ramp. The pilot’s normal tiedown space was occupied and he initiated a 180-degree turn to exit the row for an alternate location.

At 1630 Pacific time, the helicopter, operated as a Part 135 tourist sightseeing flight, crashed in mountainous terrain. The pilot and four passengers were fatally injured, and the helicopter was substantially damaged. Weather was reported as clear with good visibility and dusk light conditions.

The airplane experienced a loss of engine power after takeoff and landed in a field off the end of the runway at 1440 Pacific time. The commercial pilot was uninjured but the airplane was substantially damaged. Visual conditions prevailed.

At 1206 Eastern time, the airplane was destroyed during an in-flight breakup. The commercial pilot and passenger were fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed. A friend of the accident pilot, who is also a certificated aircraft mechanic, flew with the pilot in the accident airplane immediately prior to the accident flight and did not note any abnormalities with the performance of either the airplane or the pilot.

At 2130 Central time, the aircraft was substantially damaged during a forced landing in a field following loss of engine power. Visual conditions prevailed. The Commercial pilot and passenger reported no injuries. The pilot later stated that the engine began to lose power while en route. He contacted ATC and declared an emergency and then made an emergency landing in an open field. The airplane collided with a ditch on landing rollout, and nosed over inverted….

The airplane was substantially damaged at about 2100 Eastern time after it experienced a loss of engine power during the initial climb after takeoff from Hummel Field, Saluda, Va. The Private pilot and a passenger were not injured. Visual conditions prevailed. The pilot reported that the airplane was about 100 feet above the runway when it lost engine power. The pilot attempted to maneuver the airplane to the field; however, it struck a fence and a tractor….

At 1610 Central time, the airplane was destroyed upon impacting terrain following a loss of control in the airport traffic pattern. The Commercial pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed. The flight originated near Pascagoula, Miss. A witness who was located on the airport reported that he observed the airplane fly steadily over a tree line, with no erratic movements. As the airplane descended to an altitude of approximately 200 feet, the airplane went into an approximate 20 degree nose-down attitude and impacted the terrain….

At 1945 central time, an Engineering and Research Corporation 415-D collided with a corn crop while making a low approach over a private airstrip at Harvard, Ill. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said he planned the low approach at 100 feet agl to determine if he could see the unlit airstrip well enough to land. The airplane flew into the corn crop about two-tenths of a mile from the airstrip and was substantially damaged….