mooney down at Winslow-Lindbergh Regional Airport

[N601RX]

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2011/07/17/20110717arizona-winslow-airplane-crash-fatal.html

 

[carqwik]

If the story is correct as to the time of departure (1030 local), METAR approximations showed the winds were pretty much down the runway (11) at 12G18 or so.  That's fairly benign for Winslow.  FlightAware shows that he landed at KINW that morning around 0930 local time from Colorado Springs, CO.  N3534X  R.I.P.

[aerobat95]

Man, what is going on with all these small plane crashes......we need to be more careful.  If you look at the blogs most people think our small airplanes are the most dangerous things on the planet.  I can see some big time knee jerk reactions happening if this trend continues......we all know how the gov't doesn't like GA.

[sleepingsquirrel]

I think Airplane crashes are more interesting to the media because there are so many automobile accidents  and deaths that they are no longer news! The media will cover a TV tower that collapses but never follow up with why did it crash. The same for aircraft accidents. It makes top of the hour until the next news item takes its place but the next top of the hour news story will not be about 120 deaths this week end on the nations higways.

I did my part , I didn't crack up this week end.

[mooneygirl]

This is so sad to me.  This weekend Mitch and I flew from Santa Maria, CA to Fullerton in 45 minutes, versus a 4 hour drive. Had a nice couple of days with friends. Then flew to Jackson/Westover in Northern California this morning.  Again short flight 1 hour and 45 minutes instead of 7 hours on the road.  Dropped off our boy at camp, then back in the air to Santa Maria 1 hour 10 minutes versus five in the car.  We commented on how much we fly and how FUN it is.

I just hate to lose anyone in our small Mooney family.  I heard probably four other Mooneys in the air today as we were on following. I commented to Mitch that I always try to figure out if it is someone we know.

I am sure that once the NTSB/FAA make a report we will know more.  Perhaps it was density altitude and a stall/spin/pancake.  My thoughts and prayers are with the family of those left behind.

[jax88]

Having diverted to Gallup a few weeks ago, I can attest to the winds in that part of country being a bit challenging.  25 knots "pretty much" down the runway can gust upwards of 40 knots and swing to 40 degrees off the nose in a flash.  Combined with the density altitude, we have to be especially alert when flying to these locations.

[Piloto]

Quote: aerobat95

Man, what is going on with all these small plane crashes......we need to be more careful.  If you look at the blogs most people think our small airplanes are the most dangerous things on the planet.  I can see some big time knee jerk reactions happening if this trend continues......we all know how the gov't doesn't like GA.

[Immelman]

RIP & condolences to their friends and family. This makes two F models lost with fatalities in the last couple weeks, each on departure. Lets be careful out there folks, and train to recognize what our airplanes can and cannot do while safely at altitude and/or with a good CFI.

[Skywarrior]

We justifiably brag about how our Mooneys are built tough. But, the people in the Winslow accident apparently died of massive head trauma after the plane rolled over and landed on the roof.

So, keep the oily side down...

Chuck M.

[flyboy0681]

Anything can happen at any time, anywhere and for any reason. I am extremely mindful that flying is serious business and conduct my flights as such, especially since I lost two good friends over the years to accidents.

 

 

[John Pleisse]

Quote: sleepingsquirrel

I think Airplane crashes are more interesting to the media because there are so many automobile accidents  and deaths that they are no longer news! The media will cover a TV tower that collapses but never follow up with why did it crash. The same for aircraft accidents. It makes top of the hour until the next news item takes its place but the next top of the hour news story will not be about 120 deaths this week end on the nations higways.

I did my part , I didn't crack up this week end.

[MooneyMitch]

"A Mooney has to get off pretty (good) ground speed or it will stall," said Weldon. "They wing over and nose down."

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2011/07/17/20110717arizona-winslow-airplane-crash-fatal.html#ixzz1SThacdqS

Dear Jim, candidate for Winslow mayor and PILOT!  At this point, I am giving you the benefit of the doubt that the media did distort and/or inaccurately quote you.

If not Jim, then your statement is both inaccurate, irresponsible, damaging and very misleading to the non-flying and possibly some of the flying aviation community as well. 

Remember Jim, now more than ever, we as pilots and aircraft owners, must articulate, educate and promote general aviation to the non-flying public ACCURATELY!!

[sleepingsquirrel]

I feel badly for the pilots and their families who survive these accidents. I'm still waiting for the results of a Cherokee crash in our area last month or two. However, the media has long forgotten the event.

I was ten or twelve when my cousin and her Naval aviator husband went down near Evergreen Al. on their way to Pensacola. They were flyng my Uncle's 172. Both died in the wreck. There was fuel on board but suspected fuel mismanagement. Mu Uncle did not fly for years due to grief.  Then like all aviators , got back on the horse that threw him. If aviation was not a challenge ,what would be the purpose? The risks never go away, we just do the necessary things to minimize them. We learn and become better human beings everytime we experience a close call. Hopefully our close calls never cross paths with Death and we live to realize how much we have live for.

[aviatoreb]

Some scattered thoughts:

The only fatal accident in this area for as long as memory can serve was someone near and dear to many of us, actually.  The senior aviator really as he was a 14,000hr pilot, CFI to many of us, and the DPE who signed off on my private and my IFR ticket.  He was also just a great great guy.  He had every possible rating including unusual airplanes such as the DC3.  Anyway, he died in the mountains in what seems to be a "common" VFR into IMC event in a Cherokee 140 seemingly trying to get home from a long drawn flight exam to his hockey league.  The strange thing is he always told us to go around the mountains as it only takes maybe 5 min out of your day to do so.  My point here is that yes, flying is a serious business and it can happen to anyone.

I had an interesting discussion with a fellow faculty member at my University where I teach.  I fly and he does ice climbing.  I think he is crazy and he thinks I am crazy.  I also bicycle race btw.  Really, I bet statistically we are both way better off than many many of our peers who live unhealthy lifestyles of smoking, drinking and over eating and sitting on the couch a lot.  And we enjoy our lives with gusto.  I approach my flying with a great deal of seriousness and I enjoy the process tremendously.  It engages me completely.

As to the bingo warning - the difference between the dangers of dying while playing bingo and dying while flying, or ice climbing, or bike racing - a death while playing bingo is just a matter mostly of a person will die eventually and it happened to come while playing bingo.  Whereas when doing an activity, the activity can bring to pass a premature passing if not careful.

I am a firm believer that the media are whores for covering certain kind of stories, such as plane crashes, in a manner that is entirely unrelated to where it fits in the broader mosaic of news.  Otherwise we would see the news filled with daily car carnage.

[flyboy0681]

I too gave up flying for about five years when my best friend was killed in a mid-air near Teterboro. This incident was particularly gruesome because the tower controller lost track of my friends Warrior and sequenced a Nabisco owned Falcon jet into him. The mayhem and carnage on the ground was intense.

To this day my eyes are peeled outside and my neck is on swivels each time I go up. My recent installation of a Monroy ATD-300 helps a lot, but is only adjunct.

[fantom]

No time to master flying this thing, look out the window, or hone my flying judgement. I'm spending all my time trying to master all the idiosyncrasies of my five different GPS's and the iPad on my lap. Wouldn't want to get lost, you know.

These kind of sad accidents are caused poor/delayed maintenance, faulty judgement, eroded skills, head in the cockpit (playing with gizmos or fine tuning (?) engine settings) midair's near the airport, stupid pilot tricks, and occasionally just bad luck.

Yet most of us will spend tens of thousands on a GPS because we fear being lost, but not a grand on good recurrency training. Sorry, but I guess I'm in a bad mood.

[flyboy0681]

Gary, maybe in your next life you will come back as Lakshmi. That will solve all your problems.

 

[jkenney]

Looks like we lost another plane & pilot today.  RIP

http://www.thekathrynreport.com/2011/07/mooney-m20k-n777cv-pilot-dies-in-small.html

 

[flyboy0681]

This is getting depressing.

[sleepingsquirrel]

Quote: fantom

Yet most of us will spend tens of thousands on a GPS because we fear being lost, but not a grand on good recurrency training. Sorry, but I guess I'm in a bad mood.

[fantom]

I've seen N777CV while I was up in NC, another sad ending.....see my previous post. RIP, Doc.

I'm not a Hindi, don't want to be a woman, though I respect both the religion and the gender, flyboy.

[flyboy0681]

I just thought you could use the extra hands to help juggle the electronics.

[PTK]

Quote: aerobat95

Man, what is going on with all these small plane crashes......we need to be more careful.  If you look at the blogs most people think our small airplanes are the most dangerous things on the planet.  I can see some big time knee jerk reactions happening if this trend continues......we all know how the gov't doesn't like GA.

[mooneygirl]

This from an email I received:

 

Jolie,
 
Saw your post in MooneySpace and traced the signature back to your page looking for contact info. I didn’t want to sign up to make one post so maybe you can pass this info to your group. I run the Bellanca Viking Forum, www.VikingPilots.com.
 
My Livermore based friend was entering the pattern at Winslow yesterday in his Bellanca Super Viking. A Mooney departed then called with engine problems returning to the airport opposite direction. My friend circled giving the Mooney the right of way. He never saw or heard anything. Later he asked the Mooney for a position, no response to a couple of calls. He circled for a while longer then landed. Rolling out he saw the Mooney off the departure end of the runway on its back. He said it looked like the typical return to the airport stall spin accident.
 
I had called my friend because he was in the accident reports too. Three hours hater he forced landed near Zuma NM on a dirt road. He said after seeing the Mooney accident all he could think of was watching his airspeed.
 
Frank Holbert
http://160knots.com

[mooniac58]

Hello all,

The father of the passenger that died in the Winslow crash emailed me today and wanted me to post this on this topic to follow up:

WPR11FA331

HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On July 17, 2011, about 1025 mountain standard time (MST), a Mooney M20F, N3534X, crashed while attempting to land at Winslow-Lindbergh Regional Airport (INW), Winslow, Arizona. A co-owner/pilot was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The private pilot and one passenger sustained fatal injuries; the airplane sustained substantial damage by impact forces. The cross-country personal flight was departing Winslow at 1000, with a planned final destination of Chino, California. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.

During the cross-country flight the pilot had landed at INW to refuel the airplane. Airport personnel refueled the airplane with 41 gallons of 100LL Avgas.

Witnesses saw the accident airplane depart from INW using runway 11, heading eastbound. Another witness, who was flying inbound to land, heard the accident pilot report on the Unicom frequency 122.8 that he was departing using runway 11, and was going to continue eastbound. A few minutes later, the inbound pilot heard the accident pilot say he was returning to the airport due to a rough running engine. No other communications were received from the accident pilot.

Witnesses on the ground near the airport saw the accident airplane in a steep turn, and then saw it descend in an uncontrolled spiral. None of the witnesses saw the actual impact due to the terrain or visual obstructions.

The airplane impacted the approach end of runway 29 inverted and slid about 70 yards in a westerly direction.

PERSONNEL INFORMATION

A review of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airman records revealed that the 35-year-old pilot held a private pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land.

The pilot held a third-class medical certificate issued on August 4, 2009. It had no limitations or waivers.

The pilot completed a biennial flight review on August 27, 2010.

No personal flight records were located for the pilot. The IIC obtained the aeronautical experience listed in this report from a review of the FAA airmen medical records on file in the Airman and Medical Records Center located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The pilot reported on his medical application that he had a total time of 127 hours with 1.0 hours logged in the last 6 months.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

The airplane was a Mooney M20F, serial number 670071. A review of the airplane’s logbooks revealed that the airplane had a total airframe time of 4,776.1 hours at the last annual inspection. The logbooks contained an entry for an annual inspection dated August 16, 2010. The tachometer read 933.9 at the last inspection; the Hobbs hour meter read 2,104.0 at the last inspection. The tachometer read 933.9 at the accident site; the Hobbs hour meter read 2,122.7 at the accident site. A review of the logbooks indicated that the tachometer installed in the accident airplane was not operational, and numerous entries on various dates all indicated the same tachometer reading of 933.9.

The engine was a Lycoming IO-360-A1A, serial number L-1637-51A. Total time recorded on the engine at the last annual inspection was unknown total hours, and time since major overhaul was 52.7 hours.

Fueling records at INW established that the airplane was last fueled on July 17, 2011, with the addition of 41 gallons of 100LL octane aviation fuel.

Interviews with the co-owners of the airplane revealed that the pilot was having issues with what he believed to be water in the fuel tanks. He had reported that previously he had a loss of engine power during takeoff but was able to restart the engine. The accident pilot previously opined that maybe he would install new fuel cell bladders if the problem continued.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

Investigators examined the wreckage at the accident scene. The first identified point of contact (FIPC) was a ground scar. The airplane impacted in an inverted position with fragments of the left wing tip located along the right side of the approach end of runway 29. There was an impact mark from the right wing near the centerline of the runway. Midway between the two wing impact points was an impact mark from the propeller and spinner. The debris path was along a magnetic heading of 290 degrees and was 65 yards long. The orientation of the fuselage was inverted on a heading of 230 degrees.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION

The Coconino County Coroner completed an autopsy of the pilot on July 19, 2011. The cause of death was listed as: multiple injuries due to a plane crash. The manner of death was an accident.

The FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (CAMI), Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, performed toxicological testing of specimens of the pilot. Analysis of the specimens contained no findings for carbon monoxide, cyanide, and volatiles.

The report contained the following findings for tested drugs: Amlodipine, a blood pressure medication, was detected in the blood and Urine.

TESTS AND RESEARCH

Investigators examined the wreckage at Air Transport, Phoenix, Arizona, on January 17, 2012.

Except for the fuel injection servo, the airframe and engine were examined with no mechanical anomalies identified that would have precluded normal operation.

The fuel injection servo was displaced from the engine, and the portion of flange that remained attached at the mounting pad was secure. The fracture surface signatures were consistent with overload. The fuel injection servo and induction system were examined and observed to be free of obstruction. The throttle/mixture controls were found securely attached at their respective control arms of the servo. The plug on the side of the injector body was secure with the safety wire in place. The fuel injection servo was opened for examination. Investigators observed debris and corrosion within the servo fuel inlet filter screen, internal diaphragm cavities and mixture control mechanism bore, which appeared to be consistent with previous water contamination.

The fuel injection servo was retained for further examination.

On February 2, 2012, the fuel injector servo was examined at Precision Airmotive LLC, Marysville, Washington. The servo was disassembled during the examination and was not bench tested. The full report is attached to the docket. The results of the examination confirmed the servo had rust and corrosion present throughout the unit.