Houston TV station KTRK Crash and Burn has Two Fatalities
What: Bell 206L-4 SkyEye 13 news chopper Where: on property owned by The Woodlands Development Company,heavily wooded area East of the W.E. Jones State Forest in southwest Montgomery County. When: Monday morning between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m Who: Pilot John Downhower, 43, and photographer Dave Garrett, 36. Downhower worked for Helicopters Inc., which operated the Bell 206L-4, and Garrett worked for Metro News on assignment for Houston TV station KTRK Why: Pilot and phtographer were en route to cover an officer-involved shooting when the accident occurred. On impact, the helicopter broke into pieces and burst into flames, Both men were pronounced the men dead at the scene, and both suffered massive trauma. One body was charred. The bodies were taken to the Southeast Texas Forensic Center in Conroe
Memorial service for Downhower: 11 a.m. Friday at Fellowship of The Woodlands, One Fellowship Drive.
Garrett’s funeral: 11 a.m. Saturday at River Pointe Community Church, 5000 Ransom Road, in Richmond.
A fund has been established for Garrett’s son:
Adam Ryan Garrett Educational Fund
P.O. Box 1811
Sugar Land, Texas 77478-1811.
To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
“A banner-towing plane crashed and caught fire at Compton/Woodley Airport, located in Los Angeles County, California, on August 9th.
The single-engine Aviat A1 plane crashed while attempting to pick up an advertising banner.
The pilot, who was the only one aboard, was killed in the crash while another person on the ground sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
According to Los Angeles County Aviation Commission official Dennis Lord, “For some reason, he turned loose of the banner. He was down at a very slow speed. The aircraft stalled and impacted the ground. Why is yet to be determined.
To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
A single-engine Cessna 210 crashed near Castro Valley in California, on May 21.
The plane was en-route from Buchanan Field Airport, Concord to Reid-Hillview Airport, San Jose when it went down. Authorities said the plane was reported overdue after which, Civil Air Patrol pilots located its wreckage next morning.
The pilot, who was the only one aboard, was killed in the accident. He was identified as Andrew Morse, 66, of Lafayette.
The cause of crash is being investigated.
To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
On January 17, 2019 at 15:59 minutes local time, Sky Service Chopper Eurocopter EC-130T2 crashed in Almaty, Kazakhstan on the grounds of a sanatorium. The pilot Valentin Shitov survived the impact but did not make it to the hospital. The ferry flight took off from Boralday but did not arrive at its destination Big Almaty Lake.
To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
What: Aero-Trans Corp. DBA North American P-51D-15-NA Mustang (mod.) Where: Reno Stead Airport, Nevada When: 16-SEP-2011 Who: 3 fatalities, 1 aboard (2 on the ground) Why: The Reno air race show was the site of unexpected carnage today. The famous movie stunt pilot and racer nosedived near the spectator’s box seats, veering into the tarmacs apron (likely to avoid the crowds.) Witnesses say there was a problem with the tail or elevators. Perhaps the investigation will make it clear.
“The Galloping Ghost” the North American Racer, piloted by Jimmy Leeward crashed in the crowd just before 4:30 p.m. during the National Championship Air Races. In the race, pilots fly an oval path around pylons. Leeward had apparently experienced a technical problem on the third lap which caused the plane to go out of control. It flew up before it nosedived.
Leeward, and two bystanders were killed, and 75 were injured. The grandstand holds 10,000 but 7,500 were in attendance.
Pilot Jimmy Leeward had a reputation of being one of Reno’s best pilots. His highly modified “Galloping Ghost” purportedly lost a elevator tab which made his sad demise inevitable. We don’t always say it in every post, but we always wish deepest heartfelt condolences to the families.
, , and
Statement from the Reno National Championship Air Races
“The National Championship extends their deepest sympathies and condolences to all of the families involved in today’s tragic accident. The Air Races are truly one big family and our thoughts are with all of our aviation family members, immediate and extended. While we can’t confirm the number of casualties or fatalities, local hospitals and emergency response organizations are beginning to release this information.
“At this point, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is leading the communications and investigation of this incident and the representatives from the National Championship Air Races will not be granting any further interviews tonight or early tomorrow morning. We will work with the NTSB to hold a press update at some point tomorrow, though no time has been established. Should the National Championship Air Races have any additional information to release tonight or tomorrow morning, we will issue a statement and post this on our website.
“Those wishing to check on the status of loved ones should call 775.337.5800 or locally dialing 211. We appreciate all of the thoughts and support that have been extended from around the world this evening.”
To include the featured image in your Twitter Card, please tap or click their icon a second time.
