Aircraft: Cessna 172. Injuries: None. Location: Lebanon, Tenn. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The student pilot was practicing takeoffs and landings. After the third landing he thought the airplane’s left main tire felt flat, so he taxied back to the FBO to have the tire checked. The FBO representative found no discrepancies and the […]
Distracted pilot flips floatplane
Aircraft: Cessna 206. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Stanwood, Wash. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot, 55, held multiple ratings, including Airline Transport Pilot. He had logged more than 4,200 hours, including 474 hours in seaplanes. The accident airplane was mounted on amphibious floats. Within the previous 90 days to the accident, the pilot […]
Flat tire compromises landing
Aircraft: Piper Malibu Meridian. Injuries: None. Location: Phoenix, Ariz. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot was attempting to slow down during the landing roll. As he placed the propeller into reverse, the aircraft veered to the right. The pilot was unable to keep the airplane from going off the runway. The left main […]
Poor takeoff technique crunches Kitfox
Aircraft: Kitfox IV. Injuries: None. Location: Homedale, Idaho. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: Approximately 15 minutes into the flight, the oil pressure gauge dropped to zero. The pilot performed a precautionary landing on a snow-covered hill. He examined the airplane and discovered that the sending wire had disconnected from the oil pressure gauge. He […]
Night landing fatal
Aircraft: Beech Bonanza. Injuries: 2 Fatal. Location: Chester, Calif. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The 76-year-old private pilot was attempting to land at his home airport at night. The airport is located on the outskirts of a town, adjacent to a lake and a sparsely populated national park. The moon was low on the […]
Spatial disorientation kills one
Aircraft: Beech Baron. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Birmingham, Ala. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot’s logbook was not recovered, therefore a precise determination of his flight experience in IFR conditions in the twin-engine airplane could not be made. According to a flight instructor, the pilot had owned the Baron for about six months […]
Pilot intentionally lands on closed runway
Aircraft: Piper Cherokee. Injuries: 3 Minor. Location: Platinum, Alaska. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: Several people saw the Cherokee fly over the field and line up to land on the closed runway. The newer runway is lighted and had been in operation for at least two years. The old runway had been repurposed and […]
Long flight ends in crash
Aircraft: Cessna 172. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Walnut Grove, Mo. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The private pilot had logged approximately 405 hours, of which 340 were in a 172. Of that time, 109 hours were at night. The accident occurred during the last leg of a long VFR cross-country flight. He departed on […]
Lack of experience, poor decision turns fatal
Aircraft: Cessna 310. Injuries: 1 Fatal, 1 Minor. Location: Orange, Mass. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot told investigators that he had become a pilot in 1989 and had logged about 500 hours. He had stopped flying for about seven years, then resumed about a year before the accident. The Cessna was purchased […]