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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

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  • 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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    Ultralight Crash in Canada


    What: ultralight plane en route from Volks Aerodrome in Tottenham near Caledon, Ont.
    Where: north of Toronto
    When: The wreckage found by York Region police helicopter at about 7:45 p.m.
    Who: The pilot, John Townsend of King City was found in the wreckage
    Why: unknown. Transport Canada is investigating

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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.”

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    Firebug Flight Attendant Fugitive Flees FBI

    Not only did the flight attendant fire to paper towels in the bathroom because he didn’t want to work that flight, he had done the same thing 5 weeks earlier; and then skipped out on his Federal trial in Fargo, N.D.

    Luckily none of the 72 passengers and four crew members (including himself) were injured in the fire.

    So now there is a warrant for the arrest of Eder Rojas, 19.

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  • 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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    Spanair Survives Emergency Landing

    What: Another Spanair airplane, a SAS Group airline Flight JK-4113
    Where: en route from Ibiza to Lisbon landed at Palma de Mallorca Airport
    When: one hour after take-off
    Who: 163 people on board
    Why: unknown reason. The plane had taken off on its third try.

    Good for you Spanair. Better safe than sorry. But maybe if it takes more than one try to get in flight, its time to take a hard look at the plane. D’ya think?

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  • Cockpit Fire forces Landing in Kirksville


    What: Private charter jet registered to JJSA aviation out of San Jose, California; and the plane owned by the Honeywell Corporation.
    Where: Kirksville Regional Airport
    When: Friday. 1:15 p.m.
    Who: 20-25 passenger jet was only carrying one passenger. No injuries.
    Why: electrical fire in the cockpit. The electrical malfunction appeared to stem from a heated window in the cockpit, similar to a defrosting window on a car. The failure caused the plane’s windshield to smoke and burn.

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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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    Phoenix emergency landing


    What: American Airlines Flight 436 departed Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport at 9:03 a.m. for Chicago O’Hare
    Where: Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
    When: 9:22 a.m
    Who: 138 passengers and five crew members
    Why: The pilot returned to the airport when he noticed an acrid smell and haze in the cockpit. The auxiliary power unit is going to be examined and cleaned. Passengers changed planes.

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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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  • Official Congo Condolences

    Secretary-General
    SG/SM/11771
    AFR/1742
    Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York
    SECRETARY-GENERAL DEEPLY SADDENED BY PLANE CRASH IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

    The following statement was issued today by the Spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon:

    The Secretary-General is deeply saddened by the news of a plane crash in the area of Bukavu in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

    His thoughts are with the families and colleagues of those United Nations and non-governmental organization aid workers, Congolese officials and crew who were on board the aircraft. He notes that a team from the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) is making every effort to reach the site of the accident in order to verify the fate of those on board.

    The Secretary-General expresses his gratitude to all the United Nations staff and international aid workers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions to support the Congolese people in their efforts to consolidate peace in their country.

    * *** *

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  • Congo Crash Update


    What: Beechcraft plane owned by Air Serv which provides air transport for international aid agencies. The plane was being flown by South Africa’s Cem Air.
    Where: eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Plane fragments scattered over a forested mountain area, 9 miles NW of the Bukavu air strip.
    When: Inital reports that the crashed into a mountain near Bukavu were changed; apparently the plane broke up across the mountain. The plane was last contacted in heavy rain 10 minutes from Bukavu
    Who: 15 passengers and two crew members. Most of the passengers were Canadian, Indian, French and Congolese aid and relief workers employed by Medicins Sans Frontieres and Handicap International. Seven aid workers were employed by the UN.
    Why: The weather is considered a factor but no cause is listed as yet. UN rescue teams are “securing the site and searching for and recovering victims’ bodies.” No survivors. The black box flight recorder has been recovered

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    New FAA Rules Coming

    The British Airways Boeing 777 crashed on Jan. 17, 2008, in icy weather with 136 travelers and 16 crew members aboard.

    The reason why it crashed is that the flow of fuel to both of the plane’s engines was cut off by ice that accumulated on prior flights in cold air at high altitudes. The plane was flying at minus 29 degrees Fahrenheit over Siberia.

    These are the significant just-released details behind the FAA’s move to adopt new safety rules (Pilot procedures and in-flight throttle settings) regarding planes flying in cold weather. Fuel systems might even be changed to adapt to the problem of water (which accumulates in fuel) freezing inside the fuel system.

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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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    Helicopter crashes in Canada


    What: helicopter en route to a remote fishing camp near the Quebec-Labrador border
    Where: wilderness in northeastern Quebec
    When: Friday
    Who: Two pilots–a man and woman–flown to hospital in nearby Schefferville, Que and are reported to be in good condition.
    Why: No cause is given. The search began Tuesday after someone at the fishing camp called to say the helicopter hadn’t shown up. The crash was located by a Cormorant from Greenwood, N.S. at 8:10 p.m. Tuesday

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    South African Beechcraft Crashes into Mountain


    What: Beechcraft plane owned by Air Serv which provides air transport for international aid agencies. The plane was being flown by South Africa’s Cem Air.
    Where: eastern Democratic Republic of Congo
    When: crashed into a mountain near Bukavu. The plane was last contacted in heavy rain 10 minutes from Bukavu
    Who: 15 passengers and two crew members. Most of the passengers were aid and relief workers.
    Why: The weather is considered a factor but no cause is listed as yet. UN rescue teams are “securing the site and searching for and recovering victims’ bodies.” No survivors.

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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.

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