During a night cross-country flight in VFR conditions, the pilot of the Piper Cherokee decided to make a landing at the airport in Livingston, Texas, prior to continuing to his final destination. He over-flew the airport, then entered a standard left-hand traffic pattern. He said everything was normal until nearing his flare to land on […]
aviation accidents
Loss of control kills two
The pilot of the Mooney M20J and passenger were on the return leg of a cross-country flight originating from Tulsa International Airport (TUL) in Oklahoma. Before departing from his home airfield, the pilot filed the outbound and return legs for the instrument flight rules flight as “GPS direct.” At the time of takeoff the surface […]
VFR into IFR kills one
The pilot of the Cessna 182 had recently received his private pilot certificate. He had a total of 93 hours of total flight time, of which 27 were in the 182. He did not have an instrument rating. He took off in VFR conditions from a private airstrip near Lustre, Mont., then headed south for […]
Fuel starvation brings down Cessna
The Cessna 172 was in cruise flight near Wonewoc, Wis., drawing fuel from the right tank when the engine began running rough. Unable to resolve the issue by applying carburetor heat, the commercial pilot made a precautionary landing on a grass airstrip. When he loosened the right fuel tank cap, he heard a “whoosh” sound […]
Slippery runway catches Tri-Pacer
The accident happened when the pilot attempted to land the Piper Tri-Pacer on the plowed surface of an icy runway in Baraga, Mich. As he was taxiing, he lost directional control and the airplane slid nose-first into a snow bank on the edge of the runway. The nose gear collapsed, and the engine mount and […]
Cessna rear-ended on taxiway
The pilot of a Cessna was waiting in the run-up area to the runway in Nampa, Idaho. Before he could move onto the runway, he heard a loud noise and felt his airplane move. He shut down the engine and, after getting out of the airplane, saw that the left wing of a Piper had […]
Gusty winds get better of Mooney pilot
According to an FBO employee who was a witness to the accident in Angel Fire, N.M, the weather at the time of the accident included strong, gusting winds from the west. The employee asked the pilot of the Mooney M20E about his intention to fly. He noted the pilot seemed “confident” about his ability to […]
Crosswind crimps Cessna
The student pilot was flying a Cessna 172 on his first solo cross-country flight to Bardstown, Ky. The wind at the destination airport was from 120° at 6 knots. He chose to land on Runway 20. When the airplane was abeam the intended point of landing, he reduced power, added 10° of flaps, and obtained […]
Mountain crash claims three
The commercial pilot and two passengers were on a cross-country flight in a Cessna 182. The trip included flying through a narrow mountain pass near Nikolai, Alaska. The typical route through the pass required making multiple turns, and the pass intersected with a box canyon. A family member reported the airplane overdue for arrival, and […]