Aircraft

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    Russian Crash kills 88


    Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
    Contact photographer Karev Valentin

    Update
    Monday Russian forensic scientists began using DNA testing to identify bodies and relatives visited the site; some were taken to the hospital in shock.

    What: Aeroflot Nord Boeing 737-500 Flight 821, en route from Moscow to Perm. The 737 had been leased by Aeroflot from Dublin-based Pinewatch Limited from late July until March 2013.
    Where: Crashed just outside the airport but inside the Perm, Siberia city limits. (conflicting reports say the plane landed in either a swamp or a ravine.) It missed an apartment block.
    When: 3:40 a.m. Sunday
    Who: Eighty-two passengers — including seven children and six crew members. Multiple nationalities were on the flight, including nine from Azerbaijan, five from Ukraine, and one each from France, Switzerland, Latvia, the United States, Germany, Turkey, and Italy,
    Why: Bolshoye Savino Airport air traffic control lost communication with pilots at at about 3,600 feet just before landing about 3:10 a.m The crash also disabled a section of Trans-Siberian railway. The weather was described as “mediocre.”

    • Crises centers for relatives were set up in Moscow’s Sheremetyevo-1 airport and in Perm.
    • The airline pledged to pay “compensation on obligatory accident insurance in full, which would make up to two million rubles (some 80,000 dollars) per victim.”
    • In 2007, 33 Russian aviation accidents that left 318 dead, raising concern over Russia’s civil aviation. Experts blame faults in the training of and aging fleets.
    • Transport Minister Igor Levitin will be leading the investigation.
    • A witness said “It was burning while still in the sky and it looked like a falling comet.” The plane hit the ground sharply — at a 30 or 40 degree angle.


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    Flight record of the downed plane:
    (Detailed records from http://www.airfleets.net/ficheapp/plane-b737-25792.htm)
    Boeing 737 – MSN 25792
    Airline Aeroflot-Nord
    Status : Active
    Registration : VP-BKO
    Airline Aeroflot-Nord
    Country : Russia
    Date : 2004 – Codes 5N AUL Callsign : dvina
    Web site : http://www.aeroflot-nord.ru
    General information & flightlog

    Serial number 25792 LN:2353
    Type 737-505
    First flight date 20/08/1992
    Test registration
    Flights recorded

    Operators of the aircraft
    Delivery date | Airline | Registration | Remark
    08/09/1992 Braathens LN-BRW
    24/09/1992 Xiamen Airlines B-2591
    12/03/1993 China Southwest Airlines B-2591
    01/03/2003 Air China B-2591 Stored 03/2008
    29/05/2008 Aeroflot-Nord VP-BKO

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    Three Dead in Australian Crash

    What: Kenny-owned helicopter took off from Bellburn airstrip
    Where: Purnululu National Park The airstrip abuts a bush camp in the World Heritage-listed Purnululu, about 55 kilometres by air from the township of Warmun.
    When: on Sunday
    Who: three young women and their Queensland pilot killed when a helicopter crashed. Pilot Christian Cartigue, and passengers Jessica May Cousins, 19, and Sarah Louise Thomas and Whitney Pinney, both 20.
    Why: Rugged terrain in the remote Kimberley location is hampering recovery


    Photo from http://www.smh.com.au/

    Jessica Cousins inset, Sarah Thomas … both died in the crash.

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    Cessna Crashes in Wichita Falls

    What: single-engine Cessna
    Where: front lawn of a church WICHITA FALLS, Texas
    When: Sunday morning
    Who: opthalmologist Dr. Jeffrey Harrington of Wichita Falls.
    Why: Harrington was believed to have been practicing landings at Kickapoo Downtown Airport when the Cessna apparently lost power and crashed fatally near Woodhaven Baptist Church.

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    Emergency Landing near Vancouver

    What: two-passenger Piper Cherokee on a training flight
    Where: emergency landing in Pitt Meadows marsh adjacent to the Swan-E-Set golf course
    Who: Delta flight instructor and student from Canadian Flight Centre
    Why: The engine of a school plane failed as the plane heading toward Delta’s Boundary Bay airport Vancouver. Thanks to the instructor, the plane landed safely with no injuries

  • Alaska Crash Passenger found

    What: Super Cub en route to a destination 40 miles east of Talkeetna
    Where: Talkeetna Alaska
    When: The plane crashed Wednesday afternoon. Dinello’s body was found at the crash site Thursday, and the search cancelled due to weather.; The passenger (a hunter) was found on Friday five miles from the crash site. He was suffering from hypothermia, an ankle injury and burns to his legs and arms.
    Who: 48-year-old Big Lake pilot Frank Dinello
    Why: Crash is under investigation.

  • Cessna Forced Landing off Coast of Belize

    What: Tropic Air Cessna Caravan
    Where: The emergency landing occurred 20 feet off the coast of Belizean Beach, Belize
    When: 9:40 a.m. minutes after taking off from the Municipal Airstrip
    Who: Skillful landing by experienced pilot 33-year-old Roy Bradley prevented fatalities. The four Texans en route to Philip Goldson International Airport (PGIA) were Jonathon Brady, Lindsay Brady, David Yorke and Gay Yorke.
    Why: The engine quit, forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing in the Caribbean Sea. Tropic Air says that the Cessna had a six month old engine.

  • Helicopter Lands Safely in St. Pete

    What: six-seat American Eurocopter AS350 used by News Channel 8, St. Petersburg
    Where: Tierra Verde
    When: September 11, 2008
    Who: Pilot/reporter Judd Chapin and photographer Cliff McBride
    Why: After a warning light come on indicating hydraulic problems, the helicopter landed safely at Albert Whitted Airport in St. Petersburg for repairs.

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    Camp Pendleton Crash Resolved in Court


    Jurors are sending a message to big business.

    The only way to hurt big business is through the pocket book. When you hit them there, they eventually come around to doing what is right.

    After this California wrongful death lawsuit verdict, my bet is that SDG&E will develop a belated conscience and will install safety devices or ball markers to help prevent this type of disaster.

    So we are offering congratulations to the jurors for using their voices; and congratulations to the families. No amount of money is going to bring back those precious four lives, or ever ease the pain of their families, but, at the very least we can hope that the families will have some comfort that a small measure of justice has been served.

  • Cessna Crashes in Ohio

    What: Cessna 150
    Where: Grimes Airport in Urbana
    When: late Wednesday morning Sept 10, 2008
    Who: Pilot Linda Blodgett, 69, of Ashland had minor injuries; passenger Christina Creamer, 58, also of Ashland, was uninjured
    Why: After the airplane’s engine stalled, the plane nose-dived into the ground near the runway. The accident is under investigation by Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Federal Aviation Administration. Accolades were given to the pilot for landing safely with a stalled engine.

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    Mooney Crashes in Wallace

    What: a Mooney 20 en route to NJ. Plane registered to Raymond Conley of Sarasota, Florida.
    Where: about a mile from Wallace Airport in a wooded area near the Duplin-Pender county line.
    When: just before 11:00 a.m. Tuesday
    Who: unnamed pilot reportedly 80 years old and airlifted to New Hanover Regional Medical Center
    Why: The plane crashed shortly following takeoff.

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    Pilot Killed during Race Prep


    What: Home built single-engine Cassult IIIM
    Where: Reno Stead Airport in Nevada.
    When: 9 A.M.Saturday September 6
    Who: 32 year-old Phillipsburg woman pilot Erica Simpson 32, of Phillipsburg, N.J. Simpson was a commercial pilot who had competed in 2006 in the race’s biplane class.
    Why:the pilot was killed when the wings broke off while she was performing a roll at the airport during a check ride in prep for the upcoming Reno Air Races. Four FAA safety officials were present. 3 pilots were killed in last year’s race, and 19 pilots in the past 45 years.

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    Cheetah Crash Victims Found near Colorado-Utah


    What: four-seat Grumman Cheetah
    Where: 40 miles northwest of Grand Junction/ 210 miles west of Denver.
    When: Found Sunday September 7, 2008
    Who: Charles Landry of Houston, born in 1947, and Steven or Stephen Bartlet of Green River, Wyo., born in 1958.
    Why: Cause unknown. The crash is under investigation by NTSB

  • Hawaii Helicopter Crash


    What: HH-65 Dolphin helicopter
    Where: off Oahu,
    When: September 5, 2008
    Who: four-person U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew. 3 killed, one missing. Including Joshua Nichols’, Lt. Cmdr. Andrew Wischmeier, 44, of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., Petty Officer 1st Class David Skimin, 38, of San Bernardino, Calif.
    Missing is pilot, Cmdr. Thomas Nelson, 42.
    Why:helicopter went down while conducting search and rescue drills with a 47-foot motor lifeboat

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    American Airlines 737 Flames out over Bradley International


    What: American Airlines Boeing 737 en route from Dallas/Fort Worth to Hartford
    Where: Bradley International Airport, Connecticut
    When: Saturday
    Who: not available. No injuries reported.
    Why: the left engine on the Boeing 737 flamed out.

    Note: possibly the same flight is listed as originating in “San Diego, California and was headed to JFK in New York.”

  • Cessna Lands on PKWY


    What: Single-engine Cessna 152 registered to Aviation Dream LLC of Tinton Falls.
    Where: made an emergency landing and then rolled to the shoulder of Garden State Parkway in Wall Township, N.J.
    When: 1:30 p.m. on Friday.
    Who: Joseph Rubino, a flight instructor from Hazlet, and John Hannon of Long Branch were on the plane
    Why:plane lost power after takeoff.

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    Hong Kong flight Grounded In Chicago


    What: United Airlines Flight 895 Boeing 747 bound for Hong Kong
    Where: emergency landing at O’Hare International Airport
    When: Saturday 5:27 p.m
    Who: 323 passengers and 18 crew members
    Why: One hour into the flight to Hong Kong, the pilot experienced unspecified problems with a temperature probe, and rerouted it back to O’Hare.

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    Queenstown Crash injures Pilot


    What: Cessna aircraft en route from Queenstown
    Where: Fox Glacier Air Strip
    When: Friday.
    Who: Pilot and two passengers. The pilot was seriously injured but the two passengers
    Why: On landing the plane took out power lines, cutting electricity to parts of the town and smashed into bush at the end of the strip.

    Fatalities: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3
    Other fatalities: 0
    Airplane damage: Unknown
    Location: Fox Glacier air strip – New Zealand
    Phase: Landing
    Nature: Unknown
    Departure airport: ? ZQN
    Destination airport: FGL
    Narrative:
    A plane travelling from Queenstown to Fox Glacier crashed off the end of Fox Glacier air strip, apparently cutting power to the township. Two passengers were unhurt while the pilot suffered a punctured lung.

    src: http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=22690

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    Beechcraft Lands on New York Highway


    What: crippled 1992 Beechcraft Bonanza flying to Burlington, Vt
    Where: on Interstate 87, close to the town of North Hudson, near Lake Placid.
    When: Wednesday evening
    Who: Pilot/flight instructor Michael Denning and 2 student pilots.
    Why: While a student was flying, the engine started clicking; then there was an explosion and a power loss. The instructor landed on the highway’s center lane with minima. clearance of surrounding guardrails. Flight instructor Michael Denning has gotten significant accolades for his skilled response.

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    Falcon Emergency Landing


    What: twin-engine Falcon jet from Delhi en route to Coimbatore owned by the GMR group
    Where: Bangalore airport
    When: Thursday-3.05 pm.
    Who: Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Finance Minister P Chidambaram. No injuries.
    Why: Engine developed a “snag.” Instruments showed a “drop” for the right engine, so the pilot switched the engine off and landed with one engine. Passengers transferred to another plane.

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    Australia Emergency Landing

    What: Piper Saratoga
    Where: Moorabbin airport Melbourne Australia
    When: September 05, 2008 12:45
    Who: The two pilots were uninjured
    Why: One of the plane’s wheels would not lock down. The pilots were forced into an emergency landing

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    Helicopter Crashes in Dubai Killing 7


    What: Aerogulf Bell 212 helicopter flying from Dubai International Airport to one of the oil fields in the Gulf Sea. The helicopter was leased to the oil company by the aircraft firm Aerogulf,
    Where: Crashed into an oil platform off the Duba Coast 50 NM west of Dubai Airport
    When: Sept 3–20:23 local time
    Who: two pilots and five contractors working for British oil and gas services company Petrofac: an American, a Briton, two Indians, a Pakistani, one Filipino and a Venezuelan.
    Why: The British pilot lost control during take off, hit a crane crashed and exploded wednesday on a recently installed Resilient jack-up oil rig. After the helicopter propellers hit the crane, the aircraft split in two; half smashed on to the rig, while the other half fell into the sea.

    The rig is owned by AP Moller-Maersk but operated by Petrofac on behalf of state-owned Dubai Petroleum. Production in one of Dubai’s four oil fields has been suspended. The engine and the gear box have been found.

    So far five of the bodies have been identified; one report says only two of the bodies need identification by DNA testing. All of the victims were contracted personnel.

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    Millions Awarded to Crash Victims


    Two helicopters–both crews using night-vision goggles–participated in the nighttime maneuvers on Jan. 22, 2004 – a “low bird” that flew close to the ground and a “high bird” that flew above looking for possible obstructions. As the helicopters were leaving Talega Canyon, the UH-1N helicopter known as a Huey struck a 135-foot utility tower. The Cobra was intact. The Huey was not. All the victims were Iraq veterans attached to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

    Fast forward to 2008. (Cases like these take years to go to trial.)

    Family members of Capt. Adam E. Miller, 29; 1st Lt. Michael S. Lawlor, 26; Staff Sgt. Lori A. Privette, 27; and Cpl. Joshua D. Harris, 21, asked for unspecified damages in the wrongful-death lawsuit. In a jury decision, over $15 million was awarded on Wednesday to the families of four Marines killed. Plus some $50 million in punitive damages.

    San Diego Gas & Electric, which owned the tower was determined by the jury to be negligent and “acted with malice” by not installing safety devices to prevent accidents. After a three week trial and deliberating one day, the jury determined that the parents of all four Marines should receive $2.125 million. Lawlor’s wife was entitled to $4.5 million for the loss and $2.2 million in lost earnings.

    SDG&E bore 56 percent of the responsibility for the collision because they knew about the hazard and failed to follow safety recommendations. Pilots and other parties shared the rest of the blame. After the trial’s punitive damages phase, the jury awarded $10.1 million to the families of each Marine who died in the crash.

    Since the accident, SDG&E has installed lights.

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    2 Camarillo Crashes in a week


    What: Experimental aircraft with a single engine
    Where: Ventura County’s Camarillo Airport.
    When: Tuesday
    Who: Pilot and passenger
    Why: The plane had experienced mechanical problems and on return overshot the runway and flipped over just past the landing strip. No injuries.

    This should not be confused with a similar incident Monday when another single-engine plane was towing a banner, flipped and the pilot was killed.

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    Emergency Landing in KY


    What: Army National Guard Blackhawk helicopter out of Frankfort
    Where: In a field next to the Kroger grocery store and Burger King restaurant in Murray Kentucky
    When: 2:30 p.m.
    Who: four-man flight crew from the 63rd Theater Aviation Brigade
    Why: one of the crew members said a hydraulic hose busted and they had to make the emergency landing. A six-foot high-pressure hydraulic hose – about the size of a straw – frayed and developed a leak. A second helicopter flew in repair parts. There were no injuries.

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    Forced Landing in Single-engine Piper

    What: single-engine four-seat Piper registered to Tri Radial Flyers, of Tiverton en route from T.F. Green Airport to New Hampshire
    Where: crashed into some trees at the edge of the Schofield Farm. Rhode Island
    When: about 8:30 am Sept 1
    Who: pilot Barry Carroll, 58 was uninjured
    Why: The plane experienced engine problems at 7,500 feet and the pilot could not make it the five miles back to the airport, so made a forced landing in the Schofield Farm field. On landing the plane’s left wing tip broke off.