Sunday, November 06, 2011

Cessna T210L Turbo Centurion, Victor Pantaleo (rgd. owner), N732BX: Accident occurred Sunday, June 26, 2011 in Romeoville, Illinois

NTSB Identification: CEN11FA425 
 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, June 26, 2011 in Romeoville, IL
Probable Cause Approval Date: 05/21/2012
Aircraft: CESSNA T210L, registration: N732BX
Injuries: 1 Fatal,1 Serious.

NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

According to the passenger, the pilot had successfully completed two touch-and-go landings, and during the climbout, the engine lost power. The airplane impacted trees, a power line, and terrain. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no fuel in the wing fuel tanks, and the gascolator only contained about 2 ounces of fuel. Only a trace amount of fuel was found in the engine’s fuel manifold valve. The passenger said that the pilot had drained the fuel sumps, but he did not recall whether the pilot had fueled the airplane. A subsequent examination and operational test of the airplane’s engine was performed. No defects in engine operation were detected and the engine produced full rated power during the test.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:

A total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot’s inadequate fuel planning.

HISTORY OF FLIGHT
On June 26, 2011, about 1431 central daylight time, a Cessna T210, N732BX, impacted trees, a power line, and terrain, during a forced landing after a loss of engine power near Romeoville, Illinois. The private pilot was fatally injured and the passenger received serious injuries. The airplane sustained substantial damage during the impact. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual flight rules (VFR) conditions prevailed for the flight which was not on a flight plan. The flight originated from the Brookeridge Airpark (LL22), Downers Grove, Illinois at an unconfirmed time and was en route to the Lewis University Airport (LOT), Romeoville, Illinois.

The airplane was owned by the pilot and based at LL22. LOT is located 10 miles south-southwest of LL22. The passenger in the airplane reported that they departed LL22 with the intention of completing some touch and go’s at LOT. He stated that they had just completed two touch and go maneuvers and were climbing out when the engine quit. He stated that the pilot attempted an off field landing short of the airport. The passenger stated that he remembered the pilot draining the fuel sumps before takeoff but could not remember if they ever put fuel in the aircraft.

PERSONNEL INFORMATION
The pilot held a private pilot certificate with single-engine land airplane and instrument airplane ratings. He was issued a third class airman medical certificate, with a limitation requiring the pilot to have glasses available for near vision, on November 10, 2009. He reported 5,850 hours total flight time on his most recent airman medical certificate application. His most recent flight review was completed on May 31, 2011. The pilot’s flight logbook was not available for review during the investigation.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION
The airplane was a 1976 Cessna model T210L airplane, serial number 21061397. The airplane was a six seat, high wing monoplane of predominately aluminum construction. It had a tricycle retractable landing gear configuration, and was powered by a 285 horsepower, turbo-charged six cylinder engine. The engine was a Continental Motors model TSIO-520-PCH, bearing serial number 513067.

The airplane had accumulated about 5,160 hours at the time of the most recent annual inspection. That inspection was completed on August 16, 2010. About 9 hours had accumulated on the airplane since that inspection.

METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION
At 1440, the weather conditions recorded at LOT were: wind from 110 degrees at 7 knots; visibility 10 miles; scattered clouds at 2,000 feet above ground level (agl); temperature 27 degrees Celsius; dew point 14 degrees Celsius; altimeter 29.93 inches of mercury.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION
The airplane came to rest on the side of an embankment near the intersection of Airport Road and Illinois Route 53 in Romeoville, Illinois. During the impact sequence, the airplane struck trees and a power line. The resting location of the airplane was about 2,100 feet east-northeast of the approach end of runway 27 at LOT. The airplane came to rest facing east having struck a tree during the impact sequence. Impact evidence indicated that the airplane was travelling in a southwest direction prior to its impact with the tree. The airplane struck the tree on the forward right side of the fuselage which was crushed rearward and inward. The airplane’s engine was separated from the airframe and located about 50 feet southwest of the main wreckage. The airplane wreckage was removed from the accident site for further examination.

Examination of the airplane in a hangar at LOT was conducted on June 30, 2011. The engine was separated from the airframe and was resting on a wooden pallet. The engine was lifted using an engine hoist. The propeller was removed during the examination. The upper spark plugs were removed and a borescope examination of the engine performed. No defects that would prevent engine operation were detected. The engine rotated freely and compression and suction could be felt on all cylinders while rotating the engine. The magneto impulse couplings could be heard while rotating the engine. Spark was detected on all spark plug leads during rotation. The fuel manifold valve was opened and a trace amount of fuel was found. The engine was shipped to Continental Motors for a possible engine run examination.

The airframe was substantially intact. The airplane was positioned level and the wings shored up to keep it level. The wings and tail surfaces remained attached. The landing gear was in the retracted position and the flaps were in the up position. The elevator trim tab actuator was measured to be 1.55 inches equating to a 0 to 5 degrees tab down deflection. There was buckling of the aft fuselage in a downward left direction. There was leading edge damage to the left wing that was consistent with the reported impact with the overhead power line. All control surfaces remained attached and all hinge locations were intact. Continuity was confirmed from each control surface to the cockpit area. No fuel was found in either wing fuel tank when checked with a fuel strainer cup. The gascolator was removed and its contents drained. An estimated 2 ounces total quantity of liquid was drained from the gascolator. Of that 2 ounces, about 1-1/2 ounces appeared to be 100LL aviation gasoline and ½ ounce appeared to be water. The sample was tested using a water detection paste to confirm the presence of water. The separated layer was confirmed to be water.

A subsequent examination and test run was conducted on the engine from the airplane on October 11, 2011 at the Continental Motors facility in Mobile, Alabama. The NTSB investigator in charge was present for the preparation and engine test run. Several engine components that had sustained impact damage during the accident were replaced with substitute or repaired parts prior to the engine test run. Subsequently, the engine was placed into an engine testing cell and run at various throttle settings from idle to full throttle. No defects were detected in the operation of the engine during the test run. The engine was able to produce full rated power output and exhibited no hesitation or stumbling during throttle application.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION
An autopsy of the pilot was performed on June 27, 2011. The pilot’s was attributed to multiple traumatic injuries sustained in the accident.

The FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute forensic toxicology report noted the presence of Ibuprofen and Quinine in the submitted samples. Specifically, the report noted:
Ibuprofen detected in Urine;
Quinine detected in Urine;

Ibuprofen is a nonnarcotic analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent. It is available in prescription, as well as nonprescription, forms.
Quinine is an anti-malarial used in the treatment of malaria and leg cramps. It is an additive in tonic water.
























 
 

 June 26, 2011 (ROMEOVILLE, Ill.) (WLS) -- One person was killed and another was seriously injured when a single-engine plane went down near Lewis University Airport in suburban Romeoville. 

 The plane took down power lines when it crashed and caused outages that affected 1,000 ComEd customers. Because of live wires, ComEd had to turn the power off before emergency crews were able to help the pilot and the passenger.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the plane took off from Brook Rdge Air Park in Downers Grove and witnesses say it looked like the plane had problems and was hoping to land at the Lewis University Airport.

But, it never made it. The owner of the Cessna 210 plane killed its owner, 68-year-old Victor Pantaleo. Hours after it crashed, the plane was removed from the lawn of the St. Charles Borromeo Pastoral Center.

It was about 2:30 p.m. when Wayne Brown and Vince Piazza looked up in the air and saw a small plane in a slow descent.

"We looked up, the plane couldn't have been more than 25 feet above our head on a steady downward hill," Brown said.

"You could tell it was going down," Piazza said. "As it was going down, it was a steady descent. It was kind of wobbling back and forth."

Watching from a used car lot just a few feet away, Brown and Piazza heard the plane crash as it clipped power lines on its way down.

"We heard the initial first hit on a tree and then we heard a crash on the power lines explode back, and by the time that was all happening, we were turning the corner, the first one on the scene," Brown said.

The men say they immediately called 911 and ran to the plane to help, but couldn't.

"It was a helpless feeling because we couldn't get to plane. There was power lines on it and there was fuel that we smelled," Brown said.

"We noticed that the power lines were down on top of the small-engine aircraft. There were two male subjects aboard the aircraft. Both, at the time, were still alive," Romeoville Police Sgt. Brian Bulmann.

Witnesses say the pilot was unconscious. His passenger was screaming for help.

"The passenger was, like I said, half ejected out of the plane, so he was still seat-belted in but half out of it, because it took most of the hit on the passenger's side. And he was moaning and groaning and screaming to get out of the plane and the police officer told him to hold tight because the power lines were all hot and they had to wait for ComEd to come and shut the power lines off," Piazza said.

FAA officials say the plane owner Victor Pantaleo died at the hospital, but they do not know if the 68-year-old was piloting the plane or if he was the passenger.

The cause of the crash is still unknown. 

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ARFF personnel follow Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 139 guidelines for annual training, whereas all department members are trained annually on the ARFF standard operating guidelines (SOGs) and several practical scenarios to keep up their skills. As with ARFF, department members not on a specialty team receive basic first responder training in technical rescue and other disciplines. It is this basic training in ARFF and technical rescue that provided the foundation for a rapid response and aggressive rescue of two victims onboard a 1976 Cessna 210 that crashed about a half mile northeast of KLOT on June 26, 2011. It was reported that the plane had just taken off from Runway 9 and was circling back around to land on Runway 27 because of apparent engine trouble.

At approximately 1430 hours, WESCOM (our regional 911 center) received a call for a plane down near State Route 53 and Airport Road in Romeoville, Illinois. Callers reported that a plane had crashed into power lines and hit a tree and aircraft passengers had possibly been ejected. WESCOM immediately dispatched our predetermined ARFF response to the area given by the caller.

Read more and photos: http://www.fireengineering.com

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