PiperComanche

Some recent fatal accidents have highlighted that general aviation pilots sometimes forget where they are and simply presume they have the performance and terrain clearance to motor off toward their destination after takeoff. That’s a result of complacency in the cockpit, aided and abetted by ATC giving us vectors when departing airports served by a […]

October 1, 2021, Chandler, Ariz. Robinson R22/Piper PA-28-181 At about 0740 Mountain time, the Piper airplane and Robinson helicopter collided in midair. The airplane sustained minor damage; the flight instructor and student aboard it were not injured. The helicopter was destroyed; its flight instructor and student were fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed. Both aircraft were […]

Recent general aviation and air carrier accidents

The airplane was substantially damaged at 1200 Central time during a gear-up landing following an electrical system failure. The airline transport-rated pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual conditions prevailed. While approaching the destination, the airplane suffered a complete electrical failure. The pilot and passenger attempted to identify the cause of the electrical failure without success. Without electrical power, the landing gear required manual extension.

The pilot made a forced landing on a rural road at 2154 Central time. The pilot and a pilot-rated passenger were seriously injured. Another passenger sustained minor injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. Visual conditions prevailed. While en route, the pilot reported to ATC the propeller was overspeeding, there was smoke in the cockpit, the engine was losing power and he couldn’t maintain altitude.

At about 0814 Pacific time, the airplane sustained substantial damage upon impacting a hangar during takeoff. The solo commercial pilot was fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed. Originally, the pilot and two passengers aborted a takeoff and landed uneventfully on the remaining runway. The pilot then had both passengers exit the airplane while the engine was still running and taxied back to Runway 19. On the second takeoff, the airplane lifted off normally, entered a nose-high attitude as if it was going to “stall,” then descended into an airplane hangar. The engine sounded normal and appeared to be producing power.

At approximately 1340 Central time, the airplane was substantially damaged during a forced landing. The pilot was not injured. Visual conditions prevailed.

At about 1741 Pacific time, the airplane crashed into an open field, sustaining substantial damage. The student pilot owned and operated the airplane; he was fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed. The pilot was completing a solo, round-robin, cross-country instructional flight. The student pilot telephoned his CFI during the accident flight, initially reporting a discharging ammeter, then reporting total loss of electrical power.

The airplane was substantially damaged during an off-airport forced landing at about 1424 Pacific time. The pilot received minor injuries. After departing with full fuel and flying about two hours in cruise at 9500 feet msl, the pilot detected irregularities with the indicated fuel quantities for some of the fuel tanks. He switched fuel tanks several times, but soon thereafter the engine quit, and he executed a gear-up forced landing in the desert.

The airplane was substantially damaged at about 0718 Pacific time when it impacted terrain during initial climb. The solo commercial pilot was killed. Visual conditions prevailed. A witness in the ATC tower observed the accident airplane depart, reporting it appeared to be “on a normal climb.”