NTSB Identification: CEN11FA537
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, July 31, 2011 in Big Rock, IL
Aircraft: Morrison E-Racer, registration: N345JM
Injuries: 1 Fatal.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. 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.
On July 31, 2011, at 0748 central daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Morrison model E-Racer airplane, N345JM, was substantially damaged when it collided with power lines and terrain while maneuvering during a test flight near Big Rock, Illinois. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the private pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Day visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which operated without a flight plan. The test flight originated at 0744 from the Aurora Municipal Airport (KARR), Sugar Grove, Illinois.
The accident flight was the airplane's first flight since being issued an experimental airworthiness certificate. According to air traffic control data, the pilot contacted ground control at 0739 for a taxi clearance to runway 27. The pilot stated that it was the airplane's first flight and that he wanted to circle the airport at 2,500 feet. At 0742, the pilot contacted the control tower for a takeoff clearance on runway 27. The tower controller cleared the airplane for takeoff on runway 27 and to circle the airport at 2,500 feet, making left turns. At 0744:12, radar contact was established with the airplane at 900 feet, west of the departure end of runway 27, in a climbing left turn. The airplane climbed to 2,600 feet while maintaining a 1 mile radius from the airport. At 0747:29, as the airplane was completing its first orbit of the airport, the pilot radioed the tower controller that the airplane was experiencing high engine cylinder head temperatures and that he would like to land. The pilot was told there was a calm wind and that he was cleared to land on either runway 27 or runway 9. At 0747:42, the pilot replied that he would land on runway 27. There were no additional communications received from the pilot. The last radar return was recorded at 0748:11, about 2 miles west-southwest of KARR, at 1,100 feet.
A witness, who was driving eastbound on Granart Road, saw the accident airplane flying at a low altitude, between 100 to 150 feet above the ground, immediately north of Granart Road. The airplane was traveling at a high speed in a slight left turn with its landing gear retracted. The airplane leveled its wings momentarily before it entered a left wing low, wings near vertical, descent. The airplane collided with power lines and a cornfield in the near vertical descent.
John Morrisons E-Racer Varient project "X Treme" during construction. John Morrison of Aurora, was killed when this plane crashed about 7:48 a.m. near Granart Road and Camp Dean Road in Big Rock Township.
(Photo courtesy of Eracer Aircraft Construction Site)
A truck carries away the wreckage of a plane built and flown by John Morrison that crashed near Aurora on Sunday.
(Stacey Wescott, Chicago Tribune / July 31, 2011)
KANE COUNTY IL— A 73-year-old man was killed Sunday when his small experimental plane crashed near Aurora.
Police say John Morrison was an experienced pilot who had just taken off from the Aurora airport Sunday morning just before 8 a.m.in his new experimental airplane on its first flight when it suddenly lost altitude and crashed into a nearby field.
The remains of the aircraft were found in a field of corn about a 1/2 mile from where Morrison had taken off.
Morrison was a long time resident of Aurora and well known in the flying community. The aircraft, called an E-Racer was a homemade plane which Morrison was taking out for its first flight. He called soon after takeoff that there was trouble and he was turning around. But the plane lost altitude, coming down suddenly just south of Highway 30, clipping power lines and crashing just feet into the corn.
The FAA and NTSB are on the scene investigating the cause of the crash which may not be known for several weeks.
A 73-year-old man who "loved flying" and survived two other crashes was killed today when a small experimental plane he built and was piloting crashed near Aurora on its first flight, officials said.
The pilot, John Morrison of Aurora, was killed when the plane crashed about 7:48 a.m. near Granart Road and Camp Dean Road in Big Rock Township, said Kane County Sheriff Spokesman Lt. Patrick Gengler in an email statement.
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The plane, described by FAA officials as an E-Racer, was making a test flight and had never flown before, said FAA spokesman Tony Molinaro. He said Morrison called the control tower at Aurora Municipal Airport to return and land after experiencing trouble but the plane crashed before it could reach the airport, said Molinaro.
According to FAA records, the plane was certified on May 31 and was described as a single-engine, fixed-wing aircraft. Records indicate that Morrison built the plane himself. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating today's crash.
The plane had taken off from the airport and was heading north across Route 30 when it began to lose altitude for some reason, officials said. The plane soon crashed into a cornfield on the south side of Granart Road, Gengler said.
As the plane was coming down, it made contact with an electrical line, causing a small power outage to the area, said Gengler. ComEd crews were on site trying to get the power restored, said Gengler.
Morrison, an experienced pilot with a long history of flying experimental planes, was the only person on the plane and died on the scene, Gengler said. Gengler also said that Morrison was making a small flight this morning in the area to test the plane.
"His wife described it as his passion. ... He loved flying," said Gengler. "The family is very stunned by this."
Morrison was described by Gengler as a long-time Aurora man who is very well-known in the area and in local aviation circles. According to records, Morrison had previously owned a local body shop called Morrison Body and Paint Shop. He also had once worked for Aurora, an official said.
Gengler said that there are several crashes in the area each year, some resulting in no fatalities.
According to National Transportation Safety Board records, Morrison survived crashes in two other E-Racer airplanes that he had previously built over the past decade.
On June 21, 2008, at about 12:30 p.m., Morrison had just departed Aurora Municipal Airport en-route to Frasca Field Airport in Urbana, when the engine speed started decreasing, according to an NTSB report about the incident.
Morrison was at 2,000 feet and about one mile from the airport when he turned on a secondary fuel pump and then notified air traffic control that he was returning to the airport to land.
But as he tried to return, he lost power completely and then the cockpit began to fill with smoke. Morrison notified controllers that the plane was filling with smoke and he then received clearance to land, according to the report.
Seconds, later he told controllers that a fire had started in the cockpit near the fire-well of the plane, according to records.
"Visibility and breathing were difficult due to the smoke," according to the report.
As Morrison approached the runway, the report indicates that he was "intermittently losing visual contact with the runway due to the smoke in the cockpit."
Morrison struggled to get the runway lined up and eventually made a hard landing which caused the left main landing gear to collapse and caused the plane to spin around and rest about 1,500 from the runway threshold, according to the report.
"The pilot successfully evacuated the airplane, which was consumed by fire," according to the report. The report indicated that it officials were unable to locate the source of the fire. Morrison told officials he believed that crash was caused by a failure in the high-pressure fuel system.
In a previous incident on Sept. 12, 2000 Morrison had to complete a "forced landing" when engine trouble occurred. He had flown out of Aurora Municipal Airport during a test flight in that airplane.
According to records, the plane was "substantially damaged" in a bean field near Sugar Grove at about 5:30 p.m. where it went down after losing power.
While that plane was destroyed, Morrison escaped without injury. He told officials that he had modified the engine and was testing it when he reported that the engine became flooded with fuel and quit.
This afternoon a flatbed carrying the mangled wreckage of the plane slowly left the scene, as one of his friends and fellow pilots looked on.
The man, who did not wish to give his name, said he had known Morrison for 10 - 15 years, and had great respect for his ability as both a plane builder and pilot.
"He was a consumate builder - the best builder I've ever seen," the man said.
He said Morrison could often be found in his hanger at the airport, working on his aircraft, and would often drop what he was doing to show visitors around his workspace.
"I work a lot with foreign exchange students, and I'll often take them up flying, since a lot of them can't do that where they're from," the man said. "I'd always take them to see John, and he'd show them his plane and how he built it and everything."
Morrison was also skilled at handling his aircraft in emergencies, and his friend said he marvelled that Morrison was able to safely land his plane during the 2008 incident.
"His airplane caught on fire, and he got it down, which is an incredible job," the man said. "He was just a really good guy. I'm gonna miss him."
Roch LaRocca, a fellow experimental plane enthusiast, had known Morrison for about four years. Morrison was featured on a Website run by LaRocca, who admired the Aurora man for his craftmanship.
"The planes he built were just like factory built," said LaRocca. "I was always impressed with everything he built."
Source: http://articles.chicagotribune.com
