Aircraft: Cessna 172. Injuries: None. Location: Moscow Mills, Mo. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot attempted to take off from the 3,227-foot runway with the wind from 180° at 13 knots gusting to 23 knots. When the airplane was about 5 to 10 feet above the runway, it encountered a strong gust of wind and drifted […]
aviation accidents
Poor fuel flow brings down Piper
Aircraft: Piper Tri-Pacer. Injuries: 1 Serious. Location: Bangor, Mich. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: On the day before the accident, the owner/pilot made a forced landing to a field due to a loss of engine power. Examination of the airplane after the off-airport landing revealed that the gascolator screen was almost completely plugged by a flaky, shellac-type […]
VFR into IMC kills one
Aircraft: Cirrus SR20. Injuries: 1 Fatal. Location: Moscow, Tenn. Aircraft damage: Destroyed. What reportedly happened: The non-instrument-rated pilot told employees at the airport that he was in a hurry to depart due to possible bad weather in the area. He did not file a flight plan before he took off in IFR conditions. A review of radar data […]
Takeoff with tailwind leads to loss of control
Aircraft: Cessna 150. Injuries: None. Location: Ketchikan, Alaska. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The pilot of the tailwheel-equipped airplane told investigators that he took off from runway 29 with a slight left quartering tailwind. As the airplane accelerated, it veered to the left although he was applying full right rudder. The airplane then veered right, and the […]
Beechcraft Skipper runs out of fuel
Aircraft: Beechcraft Skipper. Injuries: 2 Minor. Location: Clark, S.D. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The passenger reported that the airplane’s low fuel light illuminated during the flight. She stated that they continued the flight and were circling to land on a grass runway when the airplane crashed. A witness reported seeing the airplane pass over the runway […]
Amphib flips on landing
Aircraft: Murphy Rebel. Injuries: None. Location: Hayden Lake, Idaho. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: The owner of the amphibious airplane was receiving instruction from a CFI. The accident happened when the pilot was attempting to land on glassy water. According to the CFI, the pilot did not use the airplane’s checklist and the CFI did […]
Pilot’s delay leads to overrun
Aircraft: Piper Arrow. Injuries: None. Location: Mariposa, Calif. Aircraft damage: Substantial. What reportedly happened: According to the pilot, who was attempting to take off from a 3,300-foot runway, the airplane did not accelerate as he anticipated it would, and therefore it did not achieve adequate airspeed for take off in a timely fashion. He decided to abort the takeoff but […]
Super Cub dings tail on takeoff
Aircraft: Piper Super Cub. Injuries: None. Location: Gakona, Alaska. Aircraft damage: None. What reportedly happened: The pilot was attempting to take off from a remote, 800-foot-long, gravel-covered airstrip. The winds were variable. During the takeoff roll, just before liftoff, a gust of wind pushed the airplane to the right. As the airplane became airborne, the pilot […]
Steep turn leads to stall
Aircraft: Beech Bonanza. Injuries: 2 Fatal. Location: Lake in the Hills, Ill. Aircraft damage: Destroyed. What reportedly happened: A commercial pilot accompanied by a CFI was practicing touch-and-goes. The commercial pilot, 82, did not hold a medical certificate at the time of the accident. On his most recent application for a medical, he reported 18,077 hours, of which […]