Aircraft: Cessna 182. Injuries: None. Location: San Antonio, Texas. Aircraft damage: Substantial.
What reportedly happened: According to the pilot, as he touched down he felt turbulence and tailwind. He applied the brakes. When he realized that he was running out of runway, he applied the brakes harder but couldn’t stop the airplane before he ran out of runway and into the grass.
Aircraft: Cessna 210. Injuries: None. Location: Jasper, Ga. Aircraft damage: Substantial.
What reportedly happened: The pilot, who was attempting to land to refuel during a cross-country flight, switched the fuel selector from the right tank which, according to the fuel gauge contained 1/4 tank of fuel, to the left tank which, according to the fuel gauge, showed between 1/3 and 1/2 tank of fuel, then began the descent.
Aircraft: Rans S12-XL. Injuries: None. Location: Gordon, Ala. Aircraft damage: Substantial.
What reportedly happened: The pilot reported that the takeoff was normal, but as he accelerated to cruise airspeed the elevator suddenly began to flutter violently, shaking the airplane.
Aircraft: Piper Cherokee. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Anadarko, Okla. Aircraft damage: Destroyed.
What reportedly happened: According to a witness, the pilot’s first attempt to land resulted in the airplane bouncing. He did a go-around and entered the traffic pattern to land again.
Aircraft: Remox GX. Injuries: None. Location: Sacramento, Calif. Aircraft damage: Substantial.
What reportedly happened: The student pilot was practicing touch-and-go landings. During the first landing, the airplane landed hard and bounced.
Aircraft: Luscombe 8E. Injuries: 2 Minor. Location: West Bend, Wis. Aircraft damage: Substantial.
What reportedly happened: The pilot was attempting to take off from a grass 1,500-foot runway. The airplane lifted off, but the pilot felt it was not climbing fast enough to clear power lines [Read more…]
Aircraft: Cessna 310. Injuries: 2 Fatal. Location: Stotts City, Mo. Aircraft damage: Destroyed.
What reportedly happened: The right engine of the twin Cessna had recently undergone extensive maintenance. The pilot and the pilot-rated passenger originally planned to make several circuits in the traffic pattern to test the right engine, then fly the airplane to a nearby airport. However, the test flight was delayed [Read more…]
Aircraft: Piper Super Cub. Injuries: 1 Minor. Location: Akiachak, Alaska. Aircraft damage: Substantial.
What reportedly happened: The private pilot departed on a flight between two remote Alaskan communities. Because of deteriorating weather conditions along the flight route, he decided to return to his home airport.
Aircraft: Piper Aztec. Injuries: 3 Fatal, 1 Serious. Location: Charlotte Amalie, Va. Aircraft damage: Destroyed.
What reportedly happened: There was no record of the pilot obtaining a weather briefing before the flight or filing a flight plan. The destination airport was tower-controlled, but the tower was closed at the time of the accident. The runway was located along the shore, with the approach end surrounded by water on three sides.
Aircraft: Piper Warrior. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Marana, Ariz. Aircraft damage: Destroyed.
What reportedly happened: The non-instrument-rated pilot had amassed an estimated 185 hours of total flight experience, of which 7.3 hours were conducted at night over sparsely populated terrain. He had flown the route twice before in the day time.