The following briefs were selected from the 246 preliminary reports filed with the NTSB in July 2001. Statements in quotes were taken directly from the NTSB documents. The information is subject to change as the investigations are completed.
July 01, Broomfield, Colo.
Cessna Cardinal RG
At 11:25 mountain time, a Cessna 177RG was damaged during landing at Broomfield-Jefferson County (Jeffco) Airport. The pilot and his passenger were not injured. The pilot said he heard a loud pop and noticed the landing gear unsafe light was illuminated. The main landing gear was partially extended and could not be fully extended or retracted. The pilot eventually landed on runway 29L at Jeffco, where the nose gear held and the main gear collapsed. Initial examination of the airplane indicated the high pressure up hose failed. The airplane was in compliance with an AD that addresses this problem.
July 02, Queen Anne, Md.
Zlin 526F
At about 18:00 eastern time, a Zlin 526F crashed near Queen Anne, killing the pilot and leaving the passenger seriously injured. The pilot-rated passenger said the two were going flying and the owner had him sit in the rear, primary pilot position. The two donned parachutes because they contemplated flying aerobatics. The pilot flew the airplane to a local aerobatic training area and performed several aerobatic maneuvers. The airplane entered an inverted spin and the passenger released the canopy and bailed out. His parachute had barely deployed when he hit the ground. The pilot, who held a CFI rating, did not bail out.
July 02, Stevensville, Md.
Cessna Skyhawk
At about 17:10 eastern time, a Cessna 172P was damaged while landing at Bay Bridge Airport. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot said he came into the 2,903-foot runway 11 high and fast. The airplane bounced and began to porpoise. The nose wheel tire ruptured and the propeller struck the asphalt.
July 05, Friendly, Md.
Stinson 108-3
At about 11:00 eastern time, a Stinson 108-3 lost engine power after takeoff from Potomac Airfield and made a forced landing into trees. The pilot sustained minor injuries and the passenger was seriously injured. The pilot said he had just purchased fuel and was returning to his home airport about two miles to the east. The engine ran rough immediately on startup, but then smoothed out. He departed runway 24 but the engine lost all power on initial climb. The pilot believed he had a magneto problem.
July 06, Cortland, Ohio
Sonerai II
At 19:40 eastern time, a homebuilt Sonerai II was damaged during an aborted takeoff from a private airstrip. The pilot suffered minor injuries. The pilot said the airplane had been stored at his residence since he purchased it 2 years earlier. This was his first flight in the airplane. The pilot said the airplane lost its climb rate at about 15 feet agl and put it into some brush because he did not think it would clear trees at the end of the 2,500-foot turf runway.
July 06, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
Cessna Caravan
At 19:00 eastern time, a Cessna 208B lost power and ditched into the Atlantic Ocean 20 miles east of Fort Lauderdale. The pilot and co-pilot were not injured. The pilot said they were cruising at 6,500 feet from Freeport, Bahamas when the engine came to a screeching halt. Attempts to restore engine power failed and all warning lights in the cockpit illuminated except for the fire light.
July 08, Boston, Mass.
Cessna 402
At 12:15 eastern time, a Cessna 402C crashed just after takeoff from Logan International Airport. The pilot reported minor injuries. The pilot had requested an intersection departure on runway 22R. The ground controller advised the pilot that there would be a delay due to wake turbulence from a departing Boeing 737-300, and the pilot replied that he would waive the wake turbulence delay. A witness said the airplane was passing through 30 feet with the gear retracting when it made an abrupt left roll to 110 degrees left wing down. The left wing then struck the runway and the airplane crashed. The 737 pilot estimated he used about 5,000 feet of runway before taking off. The accident pilot departed 3,975 feet from the approach end of the runway and used another 1,500 feet on his takeoff roll.
July 08, Sea of Okhotsk, Pacific Ocean
Pilatus PC-12
At approximately 02:45 UTC, a Pilatus PC-12/45 flying from Hakodate, Japan, to Magadan, Russia, lost engine power and was ditched in the ocean. The pilot sustained minor injuries and the three passengers were uninjured. The pilot said he was cruising at 8,100 meters when the engine failed. The aircraft descended through multiple cloud layers, breaking out 100 feet above the ocean, which had 8- to 12-foot swells. He ditched the aircraft and all four occupants boarded a life raft. About 15 hours later they were picked up by a Russian container ship.
July 10, Medford, N.J.
Grumman American AA-1C
At 12:58 eastern time, a Grumman American AA-1C struck the ground while on approach to South Jersey Regional Airport, killing both occupants. The flight had originated from Northeast Philadelphia Airport 13 minutes earlier. A witness in another airplane reported seeing the accident airplane making a turn from downwind to base in excess of 60 degrees of bank, followed by a 2-turn spin to the ground. The pilots logbook reported 319 total hours, with 4 hours in the preceding 90 days.
July 11, Kissimmee, Fla.
Lancair IV
At about 16:30 eastern time, a homebuilt Lancair IV crashed and burned shortly after takeoff from Kissimmee Municipal Airport, killing the pilot. A witness saw the airplane about a mile south of runway 24. He heard the engine sputter and saw the airplane turn back toward the airport. The airplane banked about 90 degrees and crashed nose low.
July 11, Amargosa Valley, Nev.
Cessna 310
At 14:40 Pacific time, a Cessna 310I ran off the end of a taxiway as the pilot was trying to take off from Jackass Aeropark. The pilot and two passengers were not injured. The pilot stated that he attempted to depart on a runway heading 230 degrees and hit a berm at the end of the runway. In fact, the airport has only one runway 14/32, and the pilot was in fact departing from a 2,100-foot taxiway. All of the taxiway and runway surfaces at the airport are dirt. The airport elevation was 2,640 feet msl, the airplane was near maximum gross weight, and the ambient temperature was 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
July 12, Boca Raton, Fla.
Piper Seneca
At about 17:35 eastern time, a Piper PA-34-200T struck a light pole and seven vehicles while making an emergency landing on a highway just after takeoff from Boca Raton Airport. The two occupants of the airplane and 14 people on the ground reported minor to no injuries. The pilot said he took off from runway 24 when the left engine lost power. He retracted the landing gear but the left prop would not feather. He could not maintain altitude and airspeed had bled below Vmc, so he elected to land on Interstate 95. He landed in a southerly direction on the northbound lanes of the highway.
July 12, Las Vegas, Nev.
Mooney M20J
At 15:35 Pacific time, a Mooney M20J struck a pole while taxiing to parking at McCarran International Airport. The pilot was not injured. The pilot was behind a follow me golf cart en route to parking. As the truck passed through an opening between a parked airplane on the right and a metal pole on the left, the left wing of the accident airplane struck the metal pole. The opening was 78 feet wide and the airplanes wing span is 35 feet. The pilot said he became distracted while ground control was attempting to provide him with a telephone number to call after securing his airplane. The controllers wanted to discuss an air space violation that had occurred while the pilot was en route to McCarran Field.
July 12, Spring, Texas
Vans RV-6
At 15:10 central time, an experimental Vans RV-6 lost power and crashed while on approach to Hooks Memorial Airport. The pilot/builder suffered minor injuries. The pilot said the engine began to run rough as he turned base and quit entirely when he turned final. The airplane touched down between two rows of trailers at a trailer park and the right wing struck a tree. This was the airplanes initial flight.
July 13, Carterville, Mo.
Beech Baron
At 00:57 central time, a Beech E-55 departed controlled flight and crashed in a residential area three miles east of Joplin Regional Airport. All six aboard were killed. The airplane lost power on one engine and was making a single-engine instrument approach. Witnesses saw the airplane pitch up 30 degrees, roll counterclockwise and dive 45 degrees nose-down to the ground.
July 14, Duffield, Mich.
Quicksilver
At 13:31 eastern time, a Quicksilver crashed while maneuvering over a field in Duffield. The pilot was seriously injured and the passenger reported minor injuries. The pilot was dropping candy from the airplane to a group of people on the ground when the candy flew back into the pusher prop. The prop failed and the airplane was damaged in the ensuing forced landing.
July 15, Matawan, N.J.
Boeing Stearman
At about 17:00 eastern time, a Boeing A75L300 nosed over during the takeoff roll from runway 27 at Marlboro Airport. The pilot was not injured. Witnesses and the pilot said the airplane made a takeoff roll of about 400 feet and, when the tailwheel came up, the tail just kept rising until the propeller struck the ground. The 15,000-hour pilot said the brakes may have been binding on the takeoff roll.
July 18, Englewood, Colo.
Beech Bonanza
At 22:40, mountain time, a Beech 35-C33 made a gear-up landing at Centennial Airport. The pilot was not injured. The pilot said he had been practicing landings and the tower controller asked him to cut his pattern short. In so doing, the pilot said his habit pattern was broken and he forgot to lower the landing gear.
July 18, Sidney, N.Y.
Beech Baron
At about 08:30 eastern time, a Beech BE-58-TC crashed on its third approach to Sidney Airport after missing two similar approaches. The pilot and two passengers were killed. A witness heard the airplane miss the two VOR Runway 25 approaches, then got a phone call from one of the passengers saying they were going to try one more time. The airplane crashed about two miles north of the airport at an elevation about 650 feet higher than the airport. Weather at the time was ceiling about 200 feet with 1 miles visibility at the airport. The accident site had a 100-foot ceiling with -mile visibility.
July 19, Las Vegas, Nev.
Beech Bonanza
At 15:50 Pacific time, a Beech J35 lost engine power and was damaged in a forced landing while in the traffic pattern at McCarran International Airport. The pilot and two passengers were uninjured. The power loss was blamed on fuel starvation. The airplanes main tanks were empty, but the auxiliary tanks were nearly full. The POH for the J35 stipulates that the auxiliary tanks not be used for takeoff and landing. The pilot landed on a dirt road a quarter-mile from the runway threshold.
July 19, Millville, N.J.
Cessna 152
At approximately 09:40 eastern time, a pilot in a Cessna 152 lost control on landing at Millville Airport and struck a runway sign. The pilot was not injured. The 35-hour student pilot was trying to land with a 90-degree, 15-knot crosswind.
July 20, Garrettsville, Ohio
Cessna Stationair
At about 13:30 eastern time, a Cessna 206G overran the runway at a private airstrip in Garrettsville and struck a house. The pilot and passenger suffered minor injuries. The pilot said he purchased fuel at a nearby airport and returned to his private airstrip. During the landing, he overflew 2,000 feet of grass runway and touched down on 700 feet of concrete runway. The concrete was contaminated by buckshot from a nearby skeet shooting range and the airplane could not stop. The pilot was landing to the west, but winds were reported at a nearby airport as from 130 at 11 knots.
July 21, Bamberg, S.C.
Beech Bonanza
At about 09:15 eastern time, a Beech F35 crashed and burned shortly after takeoff from Bamberg County Airport, killing the pilot. The airplane had been delivered to a maintenance facility at the airport for an annual inspection on June 12. The work was completed on July 12 and the pilot came to pick up the airplane on July 21. He paid his bill and then started the airplane, taxied to the end of the runway and took off, all within what witnesses called two minutes. When the airplane climbed to about 100 feet agl the engine began to sputter. The airplane banked almost 90 degrees to the left and the airplane crashed nose-down.
July 21, Mattituck, N.Y.
Piper Cherokee
At about 14:15 eastern time, a Piper PA-28 overran the runway at Mattituck Airbase and crashed into trees. The four aboard were not injured. The pilot was following a Mooney in the traffic pattern and landed about halfway down runway 01 at a high rate of speed. Winds at an airport 10 miles to the southwest were from 200 degrees at 9 knots.
July 22, Benton, Ill.
Cessna Cardinal
At about 18:40 central daylight time, a Cessna 177 crashed on initial climb from Benton Municipal Airport. The pilot and two passengers were killed. Within three minutes of the crash, the area was enveloped in a thunderstorm.
July 22, Biddeford, Maine
Beech Bonanza
At about 15:10 eastern time, a Beech 36 was damaged during takeoff at Biddeford Municipal Airport. The pilot, also a flight instructor, sustained minor injuries. Post-accident examination revealed the control column lock had not been removed from the control column.
July 23, Fryeburg, Maine
Lancair IV-P
At 09:33 eastern time, a homebuilt Lancair IV-P lost power and was damaged during a forced landing in Fryeburg. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The pilot said he was climbing through 8,000 feet for 14,500 feet, when the manifold pressure, which had been about 34 inches, dropped to about 15 inches. He turned toward Eastern Slopes Regional Airport but touched down about 100 feet short of the runway with partial landing gear extension. The pilot reported that he had just completed his phase 1 flight time requirements and had inspected the airplane. During the inspection, several people, some of whom were not rated mechanics, assisted the pilot. The engine cowling had been removed, and paper towels were used as wipes on various parts of the engine and airplane. Several paper towels were reported to be lying loose on the ground at the completion of the inspection. The accident flight was the first flight following the inspection.
July 24, Placerville, Calif.
Cessna Skyhawk
At about 22:46 Pacific time, a Cessna 172M crashed on initial climb following an aborted landing on runway 23 at Placerville Airport. The pilot sustained minor injuries. The pilot had obtained his private license about six weeks earlier and the accident flight was the pilots first nighttime, solo, cross-country flight since certification. He said that on his first approach the airplane appeared too high so he went around. On the second approach he also believed he was too high, but the airplane touched down on the runway. The pilot did not think he could stop on the remaining runway, so he applied power to go around. The airplane stalled and crashed about a half-mile west of the airport.
July 26, Orlando, Fla.
Piper Arrow
At about 08:25 eastern time, a Piper PA-28R struck a fence during taxi at Orlando International Airport. The commercial-rated pilot was not injured. The pilot was taxiing to park in preparation to meet a flight examiner for a flight evaluation ride. He looked to the left to ensure that he would be clear of another aircraft and the right wing hit a chain linked fence.
July 27, Charleston, N.Y.
Lancair 320
At about 17:33 eastern time, a Lancair 320 struck trees while maneuvering near C4C Airport. The pilot was seriously injured and says he has no recollection of the accident flight. A witness said he saw the airplane fly over the neighbors private airport very low and very fast. He buzzed the airport a second time and pulled up sharply. On the third pass, he did not pull up in time and struck trees. The owner of the airstrip was a friend of the pilot but was not expecting him to visit.
July 28, Pelham, Ga.
Cessna 188
At about 09:30 eastern time, a ground refueler was killed when he walked into the turning prop of a Cessna A188B agricultural airplane at Pelham. The pilot landed and waited in the parking area to be refueled and have chemical added for aerial application. Another airplane was parked in front of the accident airplane and was also being refueled. The refueler put fuel in the left wing of the forward airplane and the right wing of the accident airplane. Then the refueler turned to his right (toward the engine) and walked into the prop. The refueler had worked for the company for four days.
July 28, Esperance, N.Y.
Aeronca Chief
At 18:42 eastern time, an Aeronca S-65-CA struck wires and crashed during low-level cruise flight in Esperance, killing the pilot and passenger. The accident site was 1 mile from the pilot/owners private strip. Several witnesses said they often saw the airplane flying low down a nearby creek. On this particular pass, one witness, the chief of the local fire department, said the airplane came in low, about 100 feet over his house, climbed over the tree line and then made a steep left turn back into the creek basin, and struck wires suspended 50 feet above the water.
July 28, Westfield, Mass.
Piper Malibu Mirage
About 16:55 eastern time, a Piper PA-46-350 struck a building during a go-around at Barnes Municipal Airport, killing the pilot and leaving two passengers with serious injuries. The air traffic controller on duty at the time said the airplane was sequenced behind two other airplanes for a visual approach to the 9,000-foot runway 20. The airplane was on final approach at about 150 to 200 feet agl when the controller instructed the pilot to go around because the previous airplane had not cleared the runway. The Malibu pilot said he wanted to remain in the pattern and was instructed to make left traffic. The airplane then banked steeply left, almost 90 degrees of bank according to several witnesses, and plunged to the ground.
July 29, Oshkosh, Wisc.
Beech Bonanza
At 11:34 central time, a Beech C35 crashed left of runway 27 while landing at Wittman Regional Airport. The airplane struck the runways visual approach slope indicator lights before coming to a stop. The pilot and passenger suffered minor injuries. Witnesses observed the airplane in a tight right base for runway 27. The base-to-final turn was reportedly as steep as 60 degrees, at which point the airplane stalled and struck the ground left-wing low.
July 29, Jacksonville, Fla.
Cessna 152 and Beech Bonanza
At about 10:05 eastern time, a Cessna 152 struck a standing Beech 35-B33 at Herlong Airport. The commercial-rated pilot in the Cessna and the three occupants of the Bonanza were not injured. The Cessna pilot said he was running the engine on the parking ramp in an attempt to clear some roughness prior to flight. The Bonanza pilot and passengers had boarded, but the engine had not yet been started. The Cessna pilot said his feet slipped off the brakes and the airplane moved forward and struck the Bonanza.
July 31, Xenia, Ohio
Beech Baron
At about 09:00 eastern time, a Beech BE-55 crashed near Xenia, killing the commercial pilot and the multi flight instructor. Witnesses reported hearing engines sputtering and saw the airplane in a flat spin as it descended toward the cornfield. The landing gear and flaps were extended. The left and right throttle levers were found in the idle position. The left mixture control was found in the lean position, and the right mixture was mid-range. The left propeller lever was found in the mid-range position, and the right lever was found just forward of the feather position. The commercial pilot was scheduled for a lesson on engine-out procedures, including the effects of various airspeeds and configurations during engine-out maneuvers and a demonstration of single-engine loss of control.
July 31, Cojimar, Cuba
Cessna Skyhawk
At about 16:47 eastern time, a Cessna 172N suffered a collapsed nose gear while attempting a landing on a road near Cojimar. The student pilot received minor injuries. The flight had originated from Marathon, Fla., at about 15:30. The student had made three touch and goes and the instructor signed him off for his first supervised solo. The instructor said the student entered a left traffic pattern for a return landing on runway 7, but the student then reported on the radio that he could not fly the airplane, that his hands were cold, and that he did not know what was wrong. On final approach at about 200 feet, the airplane broke off the approach, turned to the southwest and disappeared from sight. A U.S. Navy airplane made visual contact with the airplane but did not make radio contact. The flight continued into Cuban airspace.
Also With This Article
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