What: Beechcraft Bonanza Where: Lehigh Valley International Airport, Allentown When: late Sunday afternoon Nov 23 Who: pilot was only person aboard Why: The plane’s landing gear would not release, forcing the pilot to land the plane on its belly. No injuries.
What: Continental Express Flight 5570 Bombardier CRJ-200 operated by Chautauqua Airlines, en route to Louisville, Ky., but returned to Houston Where: Bush Intercontinental Airport When shortly after 8 a.m Who: 30 passengers and three crew members Why: Smoke in the cockpit. Passengers reported seeing white smoke coming from the engine. The plane landed safely; No one was injured and no other flights were delayed. Officially the source of the smoke has not yet been found.
What: Piper Meridian en route to the Marshfield airport. Where: near the Marshfield airport into the backyard of a home near 17th Street and Devine Avenue. Marshfield is located about 40 miles southwest of Wausau. When: 11 p.m. Saturday. Who: pilot James Franklin Edwards and two sons, James Franklin Edwards IV, age 15, and Joshua James Edwards, age 9. It is believed that these three members of the Edwards family perished in the crash. (We offer our condolences) Why: NTSB and FAA are investigating
Travis Barker filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Bombardier Inc., Clay Lacy Aviation and Goodyear Tire and Rubber, alleging the Learjet he crashed in was defective and pilots were negligent.
You may know Travis Barker as the former Blink 182 drummer. Now you know he’s also a plane crash survivor. Barker’s bodyguard died in the learjet’s crash on Sept. 19. Thelma Martin Still, the mother of Charles Still, also filed a suit.
According to the lawsuit, the learjet’s “landing gear, tires, wheels, brakes, reverse thrust system, squat switches and component parts were not airworthy…The pilots’ decision was a breach of their duty owed to the passengers onboard and was a substantial factor in causing the crash and resultant injuries and deaths.”
See below from the archives
What: Learjet N999LJ owned by Global Exec Aviation en route to Van Nuys, Calif Where: South Carolina When: departed shortly before midnight Friday Who: carrying six people Chris Baker, 29, of Studio City, Calif., and Charles Still, 25, of Los Angeles — died, as did pilot Sarah Lemmon, 31, of Anaheim Hills, Calif., and co-pilot James Bland, 52, of Carlsbad, Former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and celebrity DJ AM were critically injured Why: air traffic controllers reporting seeing sparks. The plane was traveling at least 92 mph, its minimum takeoff speed, when the crew thought the tire burst The plane hurtled off the end of a runway and crashed through antennas and a fence, crossing a five-lane highway and ending up on an embankment in flames.The plane was heading to Van Nuys, Calif.
The FAA is researching the possibility that a blown tire caused the jet crash. Investigations have turned up evidence that tire may have blown just before takeoff at the Columbia Metropolitan Airport. The cockpit voice recorder indicates that the pilot and co-pilot informed air traffic controllers they’d heard a tire burst and they attempted to abort takeoff.
In serious condition is Travis Barker, who was the drummer for the band Blink-182. Barker was one of the two people wounded when the Learjet 60 crashed on a highway and caught fire.
Listed in critical condition is Adam Michael Goldstein otherwise known as celebrity disc jockey DJ AM. He reportedly saved his own life by jumping from the burning plane while it was skidding down a runway.
Joseph M. Still Burn Center said they both suffered second- and third-degree burns
What: Cessna 172 en route from Salt Lake City to Colorado Springs Where: emergency landing in the Uinta mountains in Wasatch County at an elevation of about 9,800 feet When: 12:30 p.m Who: Craig Weaver and Bryon Meyer, in critical condition and the third, Dylan Hopkins, dead. Why: The cause of the crash is still under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The passengers were all part of the heavy rescue team for the Salt Lake Fire Department, a group that specializes in rescues above or below ground.
What: Pacific Coastal Airlines Grumman Goose amphibious aircraft chartered to deliver personnel and supplies to an energy project under construction for Plutonic Power Corporation in Toba Valley. The flight left Vancouver at 10:17 a.m. for Powell River but never arrived. Where: crashed in thick fog into a hillside on Thormanby Island 56 miles Northwest of Vancouver When: Sunday Who: 8 aboard, 1 survivor. The badly burned survivor took approximately two hours to climb down from the crash site. Terrain and foggy weather hampered rescuers. Why: under investigation. After the crash, the fuel tanks exploded.
Fort Saskatchewan’s Thomas Wilson is the only survivor.
What: Airbus A320 maintenance flight leased by Germany charter airline XL Airways and was due to return to service for Air New Zealand next month; flying from Perpignan airport Where: off France’s southern coast in the Mediterranean as it was approaching the Perpignan airport When: Who: 7 on board: Two German pilots, Another pilot and three engineers from Air New Zealand were also on board, as well as an aircraft inspector from the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority. 2 bodies were recovered at sea Why: 150-passenger plane, which was delivered to Air New Zealand in July 2005, had accumulated approximately 7,000 flight hours. The plane is in several pieces. A search is underway for the flight data boxes.
What: Delta Air Lines a Flight 18 BOEING 777-200ER, registration: N862DA Where: en route When: Wednesday, November 26, 2008 Why: The plane experienced a rollback of the right (number 2) Rolls Royce Trent 895 engine during cruise flight at FL390 (approximately 39,000 feet). The flight was a regularly scheduled flight from Pudong Airport, Shanghai, China to Atlanta-Hartsfield International The plane descended, executed flight manual procedures and the engine recovered and continued to Atlanta
What: two-seater kit-built aircraft known as a VANS RV7 en route from from Darwin to Jindare Station Where: Jindare Station airstrip about 40 kilometres south-west of Pine Creek When: 1:30pm Who: Territory sprintcar driver Mark Grosvenor was one of two people killed in the crash Why: Under investigation
What: 1954 Beech Bonanza Where: Bloomington in a field/rock quarry along Rockport Road When: Thursday morning Who: Pilot Larry Gering Why: After Gering experienced engine trouble, he landed, one wing hit a tree, and part of the landing gear broke. A witness said “the plane coming down making a circle. . . see the smoke and hear his motor . . .”
What: single-engine Cessna Where: LaSalle County: North 43rd Street When: 3:30 p.m. Nov 18 Who: pilot Keith R. Brown and passenger Michael Bontrager Why: After experiencing engine trouble, pilot Keith Brown made an emergency landing in a Lasalle County field. There were no injuries.
What: single-engine Cessna en route from New York to Groton-New London Airport Where: Bluff Point State Park. When: Wednesday night Who: Anthony Calanca, and Philip Baker. Why: The pilot said he was making an approach to Groton-New London Airport but he landed short of the runway, Flying north over Mumford Cove, the plane went off the radar. Bicyclers directed searchers to the site of the wreckage in Bluff Point State Park. The plane was flown by a student pilot.
What: Mexican attorney general’s helicopter Where: between Chihuahua City and Juárez When: Tuesday 11/18/2008 Who: two men on board: Capt. Hugo Federico Martinez Sanchez and federal police officer Miguel Ulises Ventura Hinojosa were killed. Why: In the course of landing exercises, the helicopter became entangled in cables in the area of kilometer 38 of the Chihuahua-Juárez highway,
What: RAF Sea King helicopter from Leckenfield Where: Skegness in the North Parade car park, opposite the Sea View Hotel When: November 19th, 2008 6pm Who: not listed Why: Helicopter developed a tail rotor problem while on an “exercise” and landed without injury. A partner helicopter was sent to base to retrieve engineering maintenance personnel to repair the problem.
What: twin-engine Cessna Where: Toledo Express Airport When: 11 a.m. Tuesday Who: The pilot was the only person aboard Why: After the pilot experienced a problem with his navigation equipment, he landed safely at Toledo Express Airport.
What: British Midland Airbus A320 en route from London Heathrow to Dublin Where: Dublin Airport When: Wednesday November 19 2008 8:48 pm Who: 93 passengers Why: The pilot made a distress call at about 8.42 pm to report that a burning smell was detected in the cabin on approaching Dublin. The plane landed six minutes later without injuries.
What: experimental single-engine FlightStar Where: hard emergency landing on San Fernando Road several blocks from Whiteman Airport in the northern Los Angeles suburb of Pacoima in the San Fernando Valley. When: Wednesday just after 9 p.m. Who: The pilot’s name was not released. Why: The plane lost power as it approached the airport. The plane dodged utility lines and clipped a parked car and touched down on on San Fernando Road while vehicles swerved out of the way.
What: Cirrus SR-20 Where: Crashed in a wooded, swampy area just west of the runway at Reynolds Park in Green Cove Springs. When: Wednesday morning Who: Passenger Yi Jun Zhao, of Palm Coast, was transported to Orange Park Medical Center. Pilot Kevin Black and passenger Jian Feng Guo were not hurt. Why: The pilot radioed authorities about 7:45 a.m. to report trouble with his throttle. He was attempting a landing at the landing strip along the St. Johns River.
What: Helicopter subcontracting for ElectraNet, which operates the state’s high-voltage transmission lines. flying between rows of 10m-high powerlines Where: on sheep-grazing land near Wagenknecht Rd, about 8km north of Murray Bridge. When: 11.54 am Who: ETSA sub-contractors flown to Flinders Medical Centre by the Adelaide Bank Rescue Helicopter. Why: a rotor blade struck the cables and sent the helicopter hurtling to the ground. One blade snapped off and landed about 100m away. The tail section broke off.
What: Helicopter Where: between the Haitian coastal cities of St. Marc and Gonaives When: Tuesday Nov 18 Who: two unidentified passengers were lost in the crash. Names will be unreleased until next of kin notified. Why: Helicopter plummeted into a swamp
What: red-and-white single-engine Piper En route from T.F. Green Airport in Warwick to do a practice approach Where: In the woods between Clark Road and Limerock Road about a half-mile from the North Central State Airport in Smithfield When: Nov 17, 2008 Who: Ronald Tetreault, 64, of Glocester, and Robert Zoglio Jr., 43, of Richmond Why: The plane lost power for an unknown reason.
What: ultralight/motorized glider en route from Mexico Where: over Arizona Border crashed in a lettuce field about one mile from the Colorado River. When: 7:15 a.m Who: San Luis Why: The pilot died as a result of injuries to the head. He was carrying 140 lbs of pot.
A fifteenth victim of the Lear jet crash in Mexico has died. The 44-year-old woman died Tuesday; she had been hospitalized since the crash on November 4th.
The NTSB has concluded that wake turbulence was the problem that downed the jet. Air traffic controllers told the Learjet pilots to slow down significantly so as to not gain ground on the 767, but they flew into wake 4 miles behind the jet. This action has been interpreted as pilot error. Additionally, the contract pilots may not have been qualified on the jet as deficiencies in their certifications were uncovered.
The Learjet departed San Luis Potosà (SLP) at 18:04 on a flight to Mexico City (MEX). On board were a.o. Mexican Interior Minister Juan Camilo Mourino, Deputy Attorney General Josi Luis Santiago Vasconcelos and Miguel Monterubio Cubas, the director of social communication.
The flight was uneventful and the Learjet passed LUCIA VOR at 18:40 and ATIZAPAN VOR at 18:42. It passed SAN MATEO VOR at 18:44, at an altitude of 11000 feet and an airspeed of 262 kts. It was trailing a Boeing 767-300 (Mexicana Flight 1692 from Buenos Aires). At 18:45 hours the aircraft was instructed to switch to the Tower frequency which the pilot acknowledged but never contacter Mexico Tower. At 18:46 the flight was observed approaching runway 05L. The last radar position of the aircraft was 7.5 miles from the Mexico VOR on the 256 radial, at an altitude of 9700 feet at 185 kts airspeed.
The airplane crashed on the Avenida Reforma and caught fire. Several cars were destroyed and at least five people on the ground were killed.
What: Learjet 45 flown by the Mexican government en route from San Luis Potosà Airport (SLP/MMSP) to Mexico City-Benito Juárez International Airport Where: Paseo de la Reforma, Mexico City When: 04 NOV 2008 Who: Passengers included:
Mexican Secretary of the Interior Juan Camilo Mouriño, top aide to President Felipe Calderón.
Why: At 18:45, although the aircraft was instructed to switch to the Tower frequency, the pilot acknowledged but never contacted the Mexico Tower. The Learjet then crashed on the Avenida Reforma and caught fire. Several cars were destroyed and at least five people on the ground were killed.
Voice Data Recorder Excerpts Pilot: That one’s got some turbulence. Co-pilot: Hey man. Pilot: Hey [expletive]. Pilot: Alvaro, what do we do, Alvaro? Co-pilot: Hand it over to me, hand it over to me, hand it over to me. Pilot: It’s yours Alvaro. Pilot: [expletive] Pilot: No, Alvaro. Co-pilot: Diosito.
What: Sunstate Airlines, a subsidiary of Qantas–Dash 8 en route from Roma in southern inland Queensland Where: emergency landing at Brisbane Airport When: Nov 18; touched down at 7.23 pm. Who: 39 people (35 passengers) Why: Pilot contacted air traffic control in Brisbane to report smoke in the cabin. There were no injuries. Officially:
“The pilot contacted the Air Traffic Control tower at 7.10pm after white smoke filled the cabin and passengers had all disembarked by 7.25pm.”
What: 1965 B-2B Brantly helicopter owned by David Spencer of Portland Where: Grove Field Airport near Camas When: Monday morning November 17 around 11:30 AM Who: Flight instructor and student pilot sustained minor injuries but “walked away” Why: The helicopter’s power cut out at an altitude of 20 to 30 feet and fell to the ground.