Cessna 207A, N207DF: Aircraft on landing went off the side of the runway - Incident occurred November 16, 2012 in Toksook, Alaska

 

Damaged plane near Toksook Bay 

(William Leek / November 20, 2012)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska— The tundra wind destroyed a damaged plane Friday night near Toksook Bay, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.

Clint Johnson, chief of the NTSB's regional office in Anchorage, said that a Grant Aviation charter from Bethel to Toksook Bay went off the end of the right-hand side of the runway at Toksook Bay around 8 p.m. November 16 and damaged the nose gear. 

 The plane was a  essna 207 with four people on board -- the pilot and three passengers. No one was injured.

 Johnson said later that night, the wind came up and blew the plane onto the tundra, destroying it. 

http://www.ktuu.com 

http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/photo

 http://registry.faa.gov/N207DF
 

IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 207DF        Make/Model: C207      Description: 207 (Turbo)Skywagon 207, (Turbo)Stationa
  Date: 11/17/2012     Time: 0500

  Event Type: Incident   Highest Injury: None     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Unknown

LOCATION
  City: TOOKSOOK    State: AK   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
  AIRCRAFT ON LANDING WENT OFF THE SIDE OF THE RUNWAY, TOOKSOOK, AK

INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   0
                 # Crew:   1     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    
                 # Pass:   3     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    


OTHER DATA
  Activity: Unknown      Phase: Landing      Operation: OTHER


  FAA FSDO: ANCHORAGE, AK  (AL03)                 Entry date: 11/19/2012 

Civil Aviation Authority’s incompetence caused Rs 1 billion loss: National Accountability Bureau

ISLAMABAD: The Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) incompetence and negligence caused a loss of more than Rs 1 billion and precious time of 10 years in faulty design of new Islamabad Airport, according to a statement issued by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Thursday.

“The airport does not meet the international standards for use of both airstrips… as the inter strip’s distance is only 300 metres instead of 800 metres in spite of availability of space and land,” the statement said. The NAB chairman has taken serious notice of “criminal negligence” and directed the authorities concerned to conduct an inquiry into the matter, it added.

However, the NAB chairman, during the briefing given by CAA DG under the Prevention Regime Initiative, appreciated the efforts of CAA’s present set up for conducting the detail study and revisiting the charges from international flights operating for all facilities through Pakistan’s airspace.

NAB had initiated an inquiry about the auditing and billing system of CAA pertaining to these charges in March, 2012.

The CAA has been losing approximately Rs 10-14 billions per year for the last two decades as such charges have never been revised since 1992. Additionally, there was no transparent system of accounting and verification of these charges.

In another issue undertaken during the briefing about allowing towers and high-rise buildings in Islamabad, NAB observed that negligence and faulty procedures in planning mechanism of CDA has resulted in a loss of approximately Rs 500 million to one of the builders in Islamabad as CDA planners failed to coordinate with CAA in calculating the permissible safety height. 

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk

Newton, North Carolina: High-flying dream for VisionAire Jets

Posted: Wednesday, November 21, 2012 6:53 pm | Updated: 5:45 pm, Thu Nov 22, 2012.

By Sharon McBrayer, Hickory Record

HICKORY, NC — A company that wants to break into the corporate business jet industry plans to start production on a single-engine jet next year.

It’s been a bumpy road for VisionAire Jets to get to this point but its CEO and founder Jim Rice says he wants to create 600 jobs for the local area within the next four years. Company officials say Catawba County has the work force for assembling and building the jets.

As the company rolls out its jet made of composite material, Rice says it will make corporate business jet travel more affordable.

The company, which is based in Newton with offices in Hickory and St. Louis, has a jet model, VisionAire Vantage, that is light-weight, cheaper to buy and maintain, can fly faster and higher than competitors and can use shorter runways found at municipal airports, say officials. It can transport six people, including a pilot, and can fly as high as 41,000 feet, according to company information.

On a recent day at the company’s office at Hickory Regional Airport, Rice said the company is about three years from delivering its first jets. He said airplane development takes about 15 years.

Rice and the company have been through some shakeups but continue to move forward, believing the vision will eventually become reality.

Development of jet began in 1988

VisionAire Jets Corporation started in 1988 and rolled out its prototype in the mid 1990s and it flew its first test in 1996 over the Mojave Desert. In the late 1990s, the company determined a technical design problem with the jet and stopped raising money from outside investors, Rice said. There also was a weight problem with the prototype that had to be worked out, he said.

A group of investors built a building and leased it to VisionAire Jets in Ames, Iowa, that was intended as a production facility, said Steve Goodhue, who worked for the company in Ames but left after four years to take a job at a bank. The production facility was built near the airport in Ames, Iowa and the company purchased some equipment, he said.

It also tried to get the plane certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, said Steve Schainker, Ames city manager.

Goodhue said there was a great deal of excitement from folks in Ames because of the promise of jobs.

Schainker said the city of Ames gave the company some incentive money and the city received a state grant on VisionAire Jets’ behalf to build a road to its manufacturing facility. However, the jobs the company promised to create didn’t happen and the city had to pay the state back for the grant, Schainker said.

And several investors were not able to recoup their investment, Goodhue said. However, people investing in the company understood there was some risk involved, he said.

The company, as did other aeronautical companies, suffered after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

The company was forced into bankruptcy in 2003 and its intellectual property was bought by a company in Ames, Iowa that contracted with a man in San Paolo, Brazil, who turned the jet into a twin-engine jet, Rice said. The company that had acquired the intellectual property filed for bankruptcy in 2009. Within the last two years, Rice has been able to get back all of VisionAire Jets’ intellectual property, according to company information.

When the company filed bankruptcy, it had 155 firm orders for the Vantage, which was voided by the bankruptcy of VisionAire Corporation. The customers were refunded their deposits, according to company information.

The company has spent $110 million in investments and is now looking for another $102 million in investments, Rice said. That money would take the company through FAA certification, into production and ultimately rolling jets off of the production line, he said.

Company officials are looking for investors not just locally but in other countries, including China. Rice said he met with a representative from a Chinese company about investing in the VisionAire Jets. Rice said the large investments in aviation are coming from offshore nowadays.

The company plans to sell its jet for $2.25 million, which it says is cheaper than what the competition offers.

FAA approval, competition are hurdle

One of the biggest hurdles the company has to overcome is getting the jet certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, which takes money and time.

Arlene Salac, external communications representative for the FAA, said the process involved in certifying a new type of aircraft is a very lengthy process. She said the time frame for certification would depend on many factors, some involving the FAA’s approval process and others depending on the timeliness of the company or individual designing the new product.

VisionAire Jets company officials say there is a void in the market for a low-cost business jet. Marc Bailey, executive vice president of business operations, said the company’s closest competitor is the Cessna Citation Mustang, which sells for around $3.8 million, Rice said. The next closest competitor is Honda, which sells its jet for around $4.7 million, he said.

According to VisionAire Jets information, Cirrus Aircraft of Duluth, Minn., and Diamond Aircraft in in London, Ontario, are each developing single-engine jets but VisionAire Jets’ 30-month time schedule makes it competitive time-wise.

According to information from VisionAire Jets, Piper discontinued its plan to develop a light jet and Diamond Aircraft came close to doing the same until being bought by a Dubai-based investment firm in late 2011.

The company information also said the forecasting outlook at this point remains uncertain. The market in North America for general aviation aircraft is not growing quickly but North American operators added more units to their fleets than operators in any other region. Latin American and Asian fleets grew quickly but Asia’s growth doesn’t make up for losses in other regions.

Deliveries of general aviation aircraft in all regions of the world fell after 2008 and don’t seem to have recovered to the same amount, according to VisionAire Jets information.

Story:   http://www.hickoryrecord.com

http://www.visionairejets.com

Airline 'pit crews' work to keep flights on time

 

By Aaron Cooper, CNN
updated 5:47 PM EST, Thu November 22, 2012

Houston (CNN) -- If you are heading home after Thanksgiving still groggy from L-tryptophan and an early morning Black Friday shopping spree, you're counting on a team of airline workers you might never see to get your plane out safely and on time.

"I think the pit crew analogy is actually a really good analogy," explains Stephanie Buchanan, vice president of the Houston hub for United Airlines. "We like to call it a highly choreographed ballet. There are a lot of moving pieces, a lot of teamwork that has to happen."

When a large aircraft lands, as many as 35 men and women -- most wearing orange or green safety vests -- swarm to the plane to get it ready to go out on its next flight.

"It has to be marshaled into a gate, the baggage has to be unloaded, the cargo has to be run to the freight warehouse, the passengers have to come off, it has to be refueled, catered again," Buchanan says. "Everyone has to work as quickly as they possibly can to get everything turned and ready for the flight to go out again."

Many aircraft have only 40 minutes between arrival and departure, so each gate has a large LED display counting down the seconds until the plane is scheduled to leave.

This week CNN got special access to United Airlines' ramp-services operation at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

When Flight 59 from Amsterdam pulls into Gate E18, the lead marshaler waves two orange wands directing the pilot where to park the Boeing 767 aircraft. Two crossed wands is the signal to stop.

Within seconds, wheel chocks, complete with the airline's name printed on them, are placed behind and then in front of the aircraft's wheels to keep it from rolling.

A thumbs-up from one of the workers signals the jet bridge to slide into place, as a warning bell sounds, and open the way for passengers get off.

Ramp crews are already at the rear of the aircraft opening doors to retrieve the cargo and luggage inside.

On this larger aircraft as many as 500 bags can fit into the hold with most packed into large shipping containers called "cans."

"You have someone actually taking the cans off the aircraft, onto the loader, and then you have a download crew which actually pulls the carts with the cans to their destination," Antwon Warden, a ramp service agent, says as he stands watching one of the contoured containers slide out. "There is a lot of processes that go into getting a bag from one destination to the other, but we do it proficiently."

Computerized bar code scanners help the crews identify bags and where they are headed.

"When a person checks in for a flight a bag tag will be generated," Buchanan says. "That bag tag will be read by a scanner and based on that information the agents know whether to put it on another cart to go connect somewhere else or to put it in our bag systems which can also read the tags and let us know whether that bag needs to connect to another flight or be delivered here locally."

As bags are still being unloaded, ramp service agent Max Rivera is at the front of the aircraft attaching a large tug to the front wheel so the plane can be pushed back onto the taxiway when it comes time to leave.

"We try to stay one step ahead of our normal procedures as far as getting it ready to actually depart," he says.

Inside the aircraft cleaning crews are already replacing the used pillows and blankets while a food service contractor is loading new meals and beverages for the return trip to Amsterdam.

Buchanan says decades of experience have taught them how much of each item needs to be on each flight.

"You build up a database, if you will, of every type of flight, every type of market, based on how many people are going to be booked on it as to the quantity of each thing that you should board," she says.

As maintenance crews make final checks, in the cockpit the pilots wait in the jetway ready to step into the aircraft.

Outside the plane a worker is connecting two large fire hose sized gas nozzles to the underside of the wing to pump in the thousands of pounds of jet fuel needed for the flight.

At the rear of the aircraft other hoses pump water in and lavatory waste out.

"I would say maybe the folks that have to empty the lavatories have the toughest job," Buchanan says. "But they are all equally important in our minds."

Making sure every part of the process runs smoothly from the other side of the airport is BB Chavez in the Station Operations Control Center.

"I like to think of myself as an orchestra conductor," Chavez, manager of the operations center, says as he looks over the darkened mission control room filled with computer screens.

"Everybody in here plays a critical part. You have your vendors over here, your caterers, your fuelers, your line maintenance over here, these gentlemen watch the aircraft that come in and out, and this desk here watches the whole operation."

On his screen he can see video of the plane at E18 finishing its preparations.

"We still have a couple of passengers boarding," he says with 25 minutes to go until departure. "Looks like everything is right on time."

Turning planes around quickly might be nice for passengers, but it also means profits for an airline.

"Our airplanes are our assets and so we need to utilize them as much as we possibly can," Buchanan says. "So the faster we can turn an airplane the sooner we can get it back in the air flying and earning revenue for us."

Back at the ramp, service agent Simi Kalasa is loading the last few individual bags into a compartment in the rear of the plane.

For him, the holidays mean more luggage to load.

"That would probably be the toughest part, because you get a larger volume of bags and you have got to work a little harder."

With one last minute bag loaded and the cargo doors shut it's time for takeoff, but one passenger hasn't made it.

Since this aircraft is an international flight, their bags can't go if they aren't on board.

The ground crew huddles and looks at their scanners to locate the bag packed away inside a can in the cargo hold.

As they open the doors to start to retrieve it they get good news; the passenger has shown up and the plane can leave.

A quick push back from the tug at the front of the aircraft and United Flight 58 is on its way back to Amsterdam.

Only a couple minutes later the next plane pulls into the gate and the process starts all over again.

Story and video:  http://www.cnn.com

AirAsia granted 6 months to operate flights

PETALING JAYA (Nov 23, 2012): AirAsia Bhd has been granted with an air operator's certificate (AOC) by the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) to fly for another five months -- instead of a two-year period -- for not meeting regulatory standards, said sources.

The current AOC is valid until April 2013.

Sources told SunBiz that AirAsia had only obtained a six-month AOC -- an approval granted from the DCA to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes -- after periodical audit findings by DCA showed shortcomings in AirAsia's flight operations procedures and practices including flawed communications between flight operations and pilots, an outdated manual and flight operations not in keeping with the manual.

The six-month period allows for AirAsia to work with the DCA to bring its flight operations procedures and practices up to mark.

It is also understood that AirAsia's head for flight operations has been changed due to the action.

Three key posts in an airline are nominated with the approval of the DCA, namely the head for flight operations, engineering maintenance system and crew training.

"The fact that they have not grounded AirAsia aircraft shows that it's not a serious safety issue, but this action still serves as a warning," one source told SunBiz.

Scheduled commercial airlines based in Malaysia are awarded two-year renewals of AOC by DCA.

In other markets, depending on the track record of the airline, AOCs can be valid for up to five years before a renewal is due.

While the audit is a biennial affair, the DCA conducts inspections on airlines at least once a year.

According to another source, a two-year renewal is given if airlines meet standards set by the regulator. Otherwise they are given a period of time, depending on the issue, to comply before a renewal of AOC is given, or it is revoked entirely.

In the event of a withdrawal of an AOC, the airline can work to meet standards set and re-apply for an AOC which will have to be approved by the Cabinet.

AirAsia and DCA officials did not respond to questions sent via e-mail, as at press time.

An industry observer said it is unlikely that AirAsia will let the situation progress to an outright withdrawal of AirAsia's AOC, ultimately grounding its flights.

"They (AirAsia) will definitely address whatever issues DCA have and make sure they bring in the right people and fire the wrong people, because too much is at stake."

He added that while the action taken by DCA is unlikely to have any financial impact on AirAsia as a company, it may impact its reputation as an airline and its ability to secure the best deals for financing in the future.

 http://www.thesundaily.my

Aerospatiale AS 355F1, Bahamian registration C6-APV, registered to Pioneer Caribbean Logistics Ltd.

NTSB Identification: ERA13WA066 
 14 CFR Non-U.S., Non-Commercial
Accident occurred Thursday, November 22, 2012 in Great Guana Cay, Bahamas
Aircraft: AEROSPATIALE AS-355F1, registration: C6-APV
Injuries: 1 Fatal,4 Serious.

The foreign authority was the source of this information.

On November 22, 2012, about 1310 eastern standard time, an Aerospatiale AS 355F1, Bahamian registration C6-APV, registered to Pioneer Caribbean Logistics Ltd., impacted terrain while attempting to land at Baker's Bay Resort, Great Guana Cay, Bahamas. The pilot and three passengers were seriously injured, while a fourth passenger was fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight that departed Marsh Harbour, Bahamas, destined for Baker's Bay Resort.

The investigation is under the jurisdiction of the Government of the Bahamas. Any further information pertaining to this accident may be obtained from:

Manager of Flight Standards Inspectorate, Bahamas
P.O. Box AP 59244
Nassau, N.P. Bahamas
Phone: (242) 377-3445/3448
Facsimile: (242) 377-6060

This report is for information purposes only, and contains only information released by or obtained for the Bahamian Government.

 The Bahamas Ministry of Transportation and Aviation has completed its preliminary report on the Abaco helicopter crash that killed a New York businessman last week.

The report, which was completed through the Civil Aviation Department’s Air Accident Investigation and Prevention Unit, found that control of the helicopter was lost while attempting to land at the Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club on Abaco’s Great Guana Cay.

Florida-based real estate developer Jeffrey Soffer, whose company owns the Fontainebleau resort in Miami Beach, was among the crash’s survivors.

The helicopter first departed from Marsh Harbour International Airport at 1:10 PM EST on Thursday, Nov. 22, with five passengers on board.

“While attempting to land, control was lost, resulting in the helicopter crash-landing at Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club, Great Guana Cay, Abaco,” the report said.

The crash killed one passenger and left four others with “injuries of varying severity.”

“The surviving passengers were rescued and stabilized prior to being transported to Marsh Harbour for further evaluations prior to being airlifted to South Florida [three persons] and Nassau [1 person],” the report said.

A three-member team from the Bahamas Civil Aviation Department began the investigation on Friday, and members of the Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club and the Royal Bahamas Police Force provided a “detailed briefing” to them.

The Air Accident Investigation Prevention Unit completed its on-site investigations, recovered the wreckage and relocated it to a “secure location.”

According to International Civil Aviation Organization and Bahamas Civli Aviation Safety regulations, the manufacturers of the airframe, engine and propeller and the State of Design have been notified of the accident.

The unit is currently coordinating plans for additional analysis and testing to determine the cause and contributing factors of the accident, it said.

The Ministry said it was expected that “further analyses and testing will take place” to determine the cause and contributing factors of the crash.

“The Ministry of Transport and Aviation extends its sincere condolences to the family of the deceased and its best wishes for the speedy recovery of the survivors of the crash,” it said in a statement. 

http://www.caribjournal.com

 

The victim of Thursday's fatal helicopter crash at Baker's Bay Golf and Ocean Club on Guana Cay, Abaco, has been identified as Lance O. Valdez, a Lyford Cay resident, who owned the downed rotorcraft. 

Though police were yesterday reluctant to confirm the victim's identity, several Lyford Cay residents and others who knew him confirmed it is Valdez, a Lyford Cay property owner, whose two young daughters attend Lyford Cay International School.

The Nassau Guardian understands that Valdez and the others on board were friends and family of Jeffrey Soffer, owner of the Fontainebleau Resorts in Miami.

Soffer was at the property at the time of the crash, but it is still unclear if he was on the helicopter when it went down.

The four survivors were airlifted to New Providence and Miami, Florida.

All five people on-board are Americans, police confirmed.

Daniel Figueroa, an aircraft mechanic at Fontainebleau Aviation at Opa-Locka Executive Airport (KOPF) in Miami, said he and several colleagues were saddened by the loss.

"We all knew him at Fontainebleau," he said from Miami yesterday. "I received the call early Friday around 12:35 a.m. about the accident. He has a wife and a daughter (and was a) very nice man."

Figueroa said that the helicopter belonged to Valdez.

Several members of the Lyford Cay community remembered Valdez fondly yesterday.

"He was a very loving husband and father to his wife and kids, who loved tennis and loved to travel," a Lyford Cay resident, who asked not to be named, said.

She claimed she occasionally visited Valdez's niece at his home and "he will be greatly missed by those close to him".

A second Lyford Cay resident and neighbor of Valdez, who also did not wish to be identified, said, "[His daughter was a] classmate of my daughter – tragic."

A team from the Civil Aviation Department yesterday traveled to Abaco to investigate the crash, said Ivan Cleare, acting director of the Civil Aviation Department.

"They are presently on the ground at Marsh Harbour en route to Baker's Bay to carry out the investigation,"?he said.

"Until we hear from them, we cannot say anything further to this accident."

He said the team of three would submit a preliminary report that he expects to make public by 3 p.m. today.

A source at the resort, who witnessed the crash, said as the helicopter attempted to land it went into a tailspin twice before crashing, throwing one of the victims out of the cabin.

http://freeport.nassauguardian.net

At least one person is dead, and four others seriously injured after a helicopter crashed at the Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club in Guana Cay, Abaco, shortly before 1pm yesterday.

 According to an eye-witness, the helicopter crashed near the property’s townhouses after it was caught by a violent gust of wind as it attempted to land.

Reportedly the helicopter’s rotor blade hit the ground – flinging three of the passengers from the chopper.

The co-pilot was reportedly killed by the blades.

One of the women passengers had to be cut out of her seat’s harness, while the pilot received serious head and abdominal injuries.

The passengers have yet to be identified, but a Florida TV station, CBS Miami, identified one as Jeffrey Soffer, head of top US real estate company Turnberry and owner of the famous Miami hotel Fontainebleau. He is said to be alive, but injured.

Dr James Hull, of the Marsh Harbour Medical Centre, stabilized the pilot so that he could be flown to Nassau by the US Coast Guard for admittance to Doctor’s Hospital. Two of the passengers were then taken to his Marsh Harbour clinic, while the third passenger was seen by the doctor at the government clinic.

Once the three passengers were stabilized they were flown by a private plane to the United States.

The co-pilot, who was killed in the crash, is believed to be a second home owner in the Bahamas who had traveled to Abaco for Thanksgiving.

The helicopter was ferrying the group from Marsh Harbour to Baker’s Bay where persons were waiting to meet them. “The first report to reach Marsh Harbour,” said a local, “was that the helicopter had crashed into a group of people. Thank heavens this was not true, but it is a miracle no one else was killed, because I heard that pieces from the rotar blade were flying in all directions.”

According to the Associated Press, Baker’s Bay employees helped pull the survivors from the wreckage. They were then taken by boat from Guana Cay to Marsh Harbour where they were met at the dock by a doctor and a private ambulance.

“They got into an air pocket and the helicopter went into a tailspin. It recovered, and then it went into a tailspin again and from there it hit the ground. The tail came off and the cabin just went into a spin and somebody got thrown out,” one employee was quoted as saying.

Minister of Transport and Aviation, Glenys Hanna-Martin, said the Flight Standard Inspectorate will be launching a full investigation into the crash. This team, she said, will be dispatched to Guana Cay as “soon as possible”.

Mrs Hanna-Martin also added that their investigation will include talks with the manufacturers of the helicopter’s engines.

Representatives from the Royal Bahamas Police Force have been dispatched to the island.

http://www.tribune242.com

 NASSAU, Bahamas (CBSMiami/AP) – Jeffrey Soffer, the owner of Miami’s famous Fontainebleau hotel, was one of three survivors in a deadly helicopter crash in The Bahamas. 

The crash took place Thursday morning in Baker’s Bay Golf & Ocean Club, an upscale resort on Great Guana Cay, according to North Abaco parliamentarian Renardo Curry.

One American died and three others were injured in the accident at the millionaires playground, located about 150 miles off Florida’s eastern coast.

According to former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, those hurt did not appear to have life-threatening injuries. However, a Nassau television manager said he could confirm two were in critical condition.

Curry said the helicopter was attempting to land at Baker’s Bay when a wind gust sent the aircraft spiraling.

Police have not released the identities of the passengers or other details regarding the crash.

The Associated Press contributed material for this report.

NASSAU, Bahamas -- A helicopter crashed early Thursday in an upscale Bahamas resort community, killing one U.S. citizen and injuring four others, police reported.

 Abaco Police Superintendent Noel Curry said all five passengers were Americans, but he could not confirm the identities or genders of the dead person or the four survivors. He also said he could not immediately comment on the extent of the survivors' injuries.

A Florida television station, CBS Miami, identified one of the survivors as Jeffrey Soffer, principal of Florida-based real estate developer Turnberry Associates.

Renardo Curry, Parliament member for North Abaco, said the helicopter was attempting to land at the exclusive Baker's Bay Golf & Ocean Club on Great Guana Cay when a wind gust sent the aircraft spiraling.

An employee of the resort community told The Associated Press that he helped residents pull people out of the wreckage. He described the crash as a "nightmare."

"They got into an air pocket and it went into a tailspin. It recovered, and then it went into a tailspin again and from there it hit the ground. The tail came off and the cabin just went into a spin and somebody got thrown out," said the Baker's Bay employee, who insisted on not being quoted by name because he wasn't authorized to speak with journalists.

Baker's Bay is a playground for millionaires located about 150 miles off Florida's eastern coast. It includes an oceanfront golf course, a private family beach club and boutique shops.

There were roughly 180 people on the island property for Thanksgiving festivities, the resort employee said.

"Everyone who was there in one way or another helped out," said Curry, the police superintendent.

http://www.miamiherald.com

North Abaco parliamentarian Renardo Curry says at least four Americans were on the helicopter when it crashed Thursday morning in Baker's Bay Golf & Ocean Club on Great Guana Cay.
Police have not released the identities of the passengers or other details about the crash.

Curry says the helicopter was attempting to land at Baker's Bay when a wind gust sent the aircraft spiraling.

Former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham says one passenger died and three survivors are being treated at a clinic. He says their injuries are apparently not life threatening.

Baker's Bay is a playground for millionaires located about 150 miles off Florida's eastern coast.

Source:   http://www.wgme.com

At least one person is dead, and four others seriously injured after a helicopter crashed in North Abaco shortly after 2pm today. 

According to initial reports, the occupants were on their way to the Baker's Bay Golf and Ocean Club when the incident occurred. 

They had reportedly just arrived in Abaco on a private jet and were being shuttled in the helicopter to the luxury resort.

http://www.tribune242.com

VIDEO: Airplane flying over New York City with a green laser scanner

 

Published on November 19, 2012 by SuperStarRendon
 
"A twin-engine airplane flying over NYC on Nov 19 2012 with a green laser scanner.  It did several passes from around 2am to 4am or so.  You could see the green laser in the beginning.   Camera not the best for night time shots.  Not sure what they are scanning, but my building was scanned along with myself.  Normally NYC will alert its residents of any event so no panic sets in.  Not sure why NYC didn't notify the residents.  The only info I was able to find was from last 2 years NY Times article."
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/10/nyregion/10mapping.html

Sea King military chopper makes emergency landing by Tim Hortons

A Canadian Military Sea King Helicopter was forced to make an emergency in an empty lot in a residential area near a shopping centre in Halifax, N.S. Thursday, Nov. 22, 2012. (Sándor Fizli/QMI Agency)

A military helicopter made an emergency landing Thursday in a Halifax parking lot next to a Sobey's grocery store and a Tim Hortons, police said.
 
By the time Halifax Regional Police arrived on the scene shortly after 2 p.m., the chopper had already landed and military cops were on the scene investigating, Const. Pierre Bourdages said.

Nobody was injured, he added.

The parking lot, just across from a Sobey's and a Tim Hortons off Hwy. 102, is vacant and set aside for future development, Bourdages said.

It's not known how many people were on board or what prompted the emergency landing.

The Sea Kings, purchased by the federal government in 1963, are now an aging fleet, prone to failure and requiring frequent maintenance. They were supposed to have been retired by 2000.

QMI Agency has left a message with the Canadian Forces seeking comment.

http://www.torontosun.com

HALIFAX - Halifax police say a military helicopter has been forced to make an emergency landing in a vacant lot.

Const. Pierre Bourdages says the Department of National Defence contacted police advising them that a helicopter was experiencing difficulties and needed to make an emergency landing.

Bourdages says the chopper landed in a vacant gravel lot near a grocery store on Peakview Way off Larry Uteck Boulevard in the Halifax suburb of Bedford.

Const. Pierre Bourdages says the chopper landed in a vacant gravel lot near a grocery store on Peakview Way off Larry Uteck Boulevard in the Halifax suburb of Bedford.

He says military police and paramedics were called to the scene, but they don't believed anyone was injured.

Bourdages says traffic was not disrupted.
 
http://www.ctvnews.ca

Pakistan Air Force: One killed as training aircraft crashes in Jhang

JHANG: A Pakistan Air Force training aircraft crashed near Kot Shakir, Hussainabad in Jhang, Express News reported on Thursday evening.

A PAF spokesperson said that the aircraft crashed in the Thal range. The spokesperson though said there was no information about the pilot at this point in time.

According to Express News correspondent Khurram Saeed reported that an aircraft which caught fire mid-air, crashed to the ground. He added that rescue services had told him that one body had been pulled from the wreckage of the aircraft.

Rescue teams and officials of the PAF have been dispatched to the spot.

Earlier this year. two Pakistan Air Force (PAF) trainer aircraft collided in mid-air on Thursday, killing the four pilots. Eleven people were injured as the debris from the planes crashed on houses near the Rashakai interchange in Risalpur. The collision occurred around 10:20 am while the two aircraft were conducting routine training flights.

 http://tribune.com.pk

Czech Air Force: Aero Vodochody L-159 crashes, pilot dies ... ... U Kolína havaroval armádní bitevník L-159, pilota nalezli v troskách mrtvého

Kolin - The pilot of the Czech subsonic one-seat L-159 military aircraft that crashed in central Bohemia this afternoon was found dead in its wreckage, general staff spokeswoman Jana Ruzickova has told CTK. 

Chief of staff Petr Pavel and air force commander Jiri Verner are going to the site of the accident, Ruzickova said.

A commission of the Defence Ministry in charge of air accidents will investigate the case, she added.

After similar cases, the planes of the type concerned are usually temporarily grounded.

The aircraft crashed before 17:30 when returning from a training flight, Ruzickova said.

"The pilot, aged 34, died when training night piloting. He crashed into the ground," Petr Lanci, commander of the Caslav air base, told the paper Mlada fronta Dnes.

"I have too little information to tell you what were the circumstances of the accident," he added.

The Central Bohemia firefighters' spokeswoman Lenka Kostkova told CTK that the aircraft fell down to a field.

Radovesnice I Mayor Danuse Duskova said she had not known about the plane's fall and the information was only confirmed to her by the police.

"I can only confirm that the aircraft feel between the villages of Radovesnice and Krechor. I have no details," she added.

An eye-witness called the emergency line to announce that he had heard a blow and had seen a flash, she added.

According to available information, the L-159 fighter has only crashed once, on February 24, 2003, in the Jince military training ground in central Bohemia.

The experienced pilot, aged, 30, did not survive the crash.

The accident was caused by a mistake of the pilot who was doing a dangerous manoeuvre at a too low altitude.

Another collision involving the L-159 occurred in August 2010 when the pilot lost control and drove off the runway at the Namest nad Oslavou air base.

The Aero L-159 ALCA is a one-seat, one-engine subsonic combat aircraft manufactured in the Czech Republic.

The Czech air force has been using it since 2003.

The project of the L-159 training combat aircraft was to provide crucial help to the aircraft manufacturer Aero Vodochody and to be one of the pillars of the Czech arms industry.

The Czech military ordered 72 aircraft, but it actually only uses one-third of them.

The state has tried in vain to sell the remaining aircraft for years.

The Defence Ministry recently put up an ad offering eight redundant L-159 fighters.

In October, an Iraqi delegation voiced interest in 28 L-159 planes, 24 of which are to be new and another four those now managed by the Defence Ministry.

http://www.ceskenoviny.cz

U obce Radovesnice I u Kolína havaroval ve čtvrtek večer jednomístný bitevník L-159. Pád letadla potvrdila mluvčí generálního štábu Armády ČR Jana Růžičková. Pilot byl nalezen v troskách letadla. Provoz letounů L-159 je do odvolání zakázán. 

 

Místo neštěstí u 

Radovesnice na Kolínsku

foto: Josef Vostárek, ČTK

 

Policie na místě neštěstí 

foto: Josef Vostárek, ČTK

Podzvukový bitevník L-159 měl základnu v nedaleké Čáslavi, vracel se z výcvikového letu. Havaroval v 17:24. "Letadlo spadlo do neobydlené oblasti," řekla krátce po neštěstí Právu Růžičková.

 Pilot měl nalétáno přes 1000 hodin, z toho 500 na tomto typu stroje. Byl v dobrém zdravotním stavu, uvedl večer náčelník generální štábu Petr Pavel.

Letoun byl v dobrém technickém stavu, měl nalétáno přes 800 hodin.

Svědek na tísňovou linku nahlásil, že viděl záblesk a zaslechl ránu. Hasiči v havarovaném stroji nikoho nenašli, nevěděli, zda se čtyřiatřicetiletý pilot katapultoval, a na poli spolu s armádou a s podporou vrtulníku po něm pátrali.

Vzápětí se ale ukázalo, že domněnka o katapultáži byla mylná, tělo pilota se nachází v troskách a nekatapultoval se.

"Není jasné, zda se pokusil o katapultáž, nebo to vůbec nezkoušel. To ukáže až vyšetřování," řekla Růžičková.

Za L-159 letěl ještě letoun Casa, jehož pilot řídicí věži potvrdil  že vidí hořící letadlo. Podle šéfa vzdušných sil Jiřího Vernera nemá tato informace na nehodu zásadní vliv.

Na místo neštěstí jede náčelník generálního štábu Petr Pavel. Neštěstím se bude zabývat komise pro vyšetřování leteckých nehod ministerstva obrany.

Místo neštěstí je uzavřeno, blíž se nedostanou ani policejní a armádní auta, protože letoun spadl do rozbahněného řepkového pole. Podle informací Práva v něm zapadli i hasiči, kteří na místo dorazili jako první, a o pomoc s odtahem vozu museli požádat traktor.

V Česku se podle dostupných informací zřítil letoun L-159 pouze jednou, a to 24. února 2003 ve vojenském výcvikovém prostoru Jince na Příbramsku, uvedla ČTK.

Zkušený třicetiletý pilot nehodu nepřežil. Příčinou havárie byla chyba pilota, který prováděl nebezpečný manévr v příliš malé výšce.

Další kolize L-159 se odehrála v srpnu 2010, kdy pilot na základně v Náměšti nad Oslavou nezvládl přistání a vyjel mimo dráhu.

Source:  http://www.novinky.cz/krimi/285607-u-kolina-havaroval-armadni-bitevnik-l-159-pilota-nalezli-v-troskach-mrtveho.html

Wisconsin’s AirFest loss could be Rockford’s gain: With no U.S. jet team, organizers nix 2013 Southern Wisconsin AirFest

JANESVILLE, Wis. — The loss of the 2013 Southern Wisconsin AirFest could be Rockford’s gain.

The southern Wisconsin show is not likely to return until a U.S. jet team is signed on for future air shows. The 2013 Rockford AirFest will feature the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels.

Tom Morgan, director of the Southern Wisconsin AirFest, said an air show without the Blue Angels or the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds is not financially sustainable.

“We had the Canadian Snowbirds signed for the 2013 show, but we could not get the Blue Angels or the Thunderbirds,” Morgan said.

“While the Snowbirds have been a great addition to our shows, we just can’t make it without one of the two U.S. jet teams.”

The necessity for a U.S. jet team became more important after the Chicago Rockford International Airport announced it would feature the Blue Angels at its 2013 show. Historically, AirFest is only successful when the Thunderbirds or Blue Angels fly, Morgan said in a news release issued Sunday.

“Rockford’s show next year is the first week in June with the Blues soon after our traditional Memorial Day weekend date,” Morgan said. “Without a U.S. jet team, we could not compete.”

Increased financial support, in addition to a U.S. jet team, is needed for future air shows, Morgan said.

“We need more community support and corporate sponsorship,” he said. “We do not receive any public funding. In fact, we pay the county to use the airport.”

The absence of public subsidies puts the Wisconsin show in stark contrast to other shows, like Rockford’s.

“Rockford has support from the county and their airport commission,” Morgan said. “They also have a 5 million-population market within a 45-minute to one-hour drive. We have to compete with that, and we can, but not without the Thunderbirds or the Blues.”

Morgan said future air shows would cost $400,000 or more.

“I understand their concern and their decision to cancel the 2013 show because air shows are very expensive to put on,” said Mike Dunn, Rockford airport director. “That said, it does offer Rockford the opportunity to reach out and possibly attract some new audience members. We won’t do any more or less in terms of marketing — we always market the Madison, Janesville and southern Wisconsin areas.”

“We certainly will want to reach out to some of their sponsors and see if they have any interest in helping our show here.”

Southern Wisconsin AirFest was founded in 2003 and has since donated more than $500,000 to non-profit agencies in the Janesville area, Morgan said. The lack of a U.S. jet team, not the loss of the show’s lead corporate sponsor, prompted the show cancelation, he said.

“ABC Supply has been a tremendous lead sponsor for our event and remains committed to it,” he said. “We welcome ABC Supply as our lead sponsor at our next show with the Blues or the Thunderbirds.”

But AirFest President George Messina painted a bleak picture for the event.

“This was a great event that we have been proud of for the past 10 years. However, without additional community and sponsorship support and a U.S. jet team, AirFest is simply not sustainable,” Messina said. “AirFest’s generous sponsors are just that — sponsors; therefore, (they) have no financial responsibility associated with this not-for-profit entity.

“Their generosity and support have made it possible for AirFest to not only contribute to support the goals of WAA, but also over the past 10 years have injected millions of dollars into the local economy,” Messina said.

AirFest’s near-term future is in the hands of the Blues and Thunderbirds. They will announce next month whether they will come to Rock County in 2014.

“The application process was completed July 1,” Morgan said. “We’ve completed all the paperwork necessary, so it’s now just a matter of waiting to see if we get one of the teams.

“The teams select the counties,” Morgan said. “Our 2014 plans depend entirely on whether one of the teams selects Rock County.”

Source:   http://www.rrstar.com

Cranfield Flying School launches scholarship competition

 

Wannabe airline pilots could win the chance to enroll on a course that could lead to them becoming a commercial pilot.

Cranfield Flying School has joined forces with audio specialist Sennheiser to launch its ‘Live Your Dream’ campaign, part of which allows aspiring aviators to participate in a competition to win one of two flight training scholarship.

The scheme is designed to motivate people with a passion for flying to overcome the barriers and begin flight training.

New or prospective pilots can find more information about the Live Your Dream initiative at sennheiser-liveyourdream.com 

Participants in the Flight Training Scholarship Competition will be encouraged to describe the origin of their passion for flight, and why they want to become a pilot. 

 The most compelling entries have a chance of winning a scholarship valued at a minimum of £1,000.

To participate, flight enthusiasts enrolled at Cranfield Flying School can register on the Live Your Dream website and post a written story, or upload a video expressing their passion for flying on YouTube. The most exciting and creative entries can be awarded one of two scholarships for 2013.

Director of Sennheiser, Dave Dunlap, said: “Sennheiser has been supporting the broader aviation community since the early eighties, when we launched our first aviation headsets.

“With our Live Your Dream initiative, we are taking an important step towards encouraging aspiring pilots to take the next step in realizing their aviation goals. We want to help make the path towards becoming a pilot easier, more informative and more fun and hope that anyone with a passion for aviation takes the next step in realizing their dreams.”

And Head of Digital and Marketing at Cranfield Flying School, Gautam Lewis, added: “For us, Sennheiser has the lineage and integrity in Aviation equipment design which help make pilots lives in the air better.

“Knowing their work and equipment from my time managing high profile bands such The Libertines and the Hives, and my role in international television broadcast, I trust what they do and its very important for us to find partners who are thinking outside of the box and are passionate about getting more people interested in aviation”

The school offers a wide range of flying courses for students seeking to start a career as an airline pilot or who wish to experience the joy of hands on flight.

Every student educated at the school has the potential to become a heavy jet pilot. The specialty is in the training of those wishing to obtain their Commercial Pilots License, Instrument Rating, Multi-Engine Rating, and Flight Instructor through to Private Pilot’s License and beyond.

http://www.miltonkeynes.co.uk

Howard Aviation, Inc., La Verne, California: Good Samaritans help in fiery crash between van and dump truck

http://www.howardaviation.com 

 LA VERNE - Several employees of an aviation company rushed to the aid of a dump truck driver who was trapped in a burning vehicle following a crash that killed a man on Wednesday afternoon. 

Around 2:30 p.m., authorities received 9-1-1 calls about a crash between a van and the dump truck, according to Los Angeles County fire officials.

Fire officials found the vehicles engulfed in flames and the aviation company employees using commercial fire extinguishers and an emergency crash truck used at the airport to try to put out the flames.

"They're amazing for what they did," said Deanna Howard, whose family owns Howard Aviation Inc. in La Verne near the rear of the Pomona Fairplex.

The employees heard the loud crash and ran out to find the flames starting to take over the mangled wreckage.

"The guys ran back into our hangar and grabbed our fire extinguishers to try to put out the fire," Howard said, adding the flames were shooting about a dozen feet into the air.

"They were so close to the flames and the fire that three of them had to be taken to the emergency room for breathing in smoke and (radiant) burns," Howard said.

One of Howard's employees, Charles Long, got into the truck and drove it to the crash site to try to put out the flames that were burning the driver.

When firefighters arrived, they were able to pull the unidentified dump truck driver from the vehicle.

He was transported to an  emergency room with first-degree burns.

The driver of the van was pronounced dead at the scene, fire officials said.

Seven people, including the burned driver, were taken to the hospital. Most sustained minor injuries, officials said.

It wasn't immediately clear how the crash took place.

"These guys have families and they didn't think twice about running out there to help out a total stranger," Howard said. "I think they're amazing."  

 http://www.dailybulletin.com

 

A firefighter stands and looks over a fatal accident on Fairplex Drive in La Verne on Wednesday afternoon. One person died in the accident and seven people were injured. (Thomas R. Cordova Staff Photographer)

New Zealand DNA tests on helicopter crash bodies

DNA tests are being carried out on a body believed to be that of a British tourist who has been missing since a New Zealand helicopter crash in 2004. The wreckage was found in Fiordland, a remote area of the country's South Island, on Wednesday, police confirmed.

The helicopter was carrying Hannah Timings, 28, from Cheltenham, and local pilot Campbell Montgomerie, 27.

A two-week search in January 2004 failed to turn up any sign of the Hughes 500 aircraft.

Nearly nine years later, a helicopter pilot spotted the wreckage which police have confirmed was the missing helicopter.

New Zealand Police said Ms Timings and Mr Montgomerie were still to be formally identified and the families of both individuals had been told of the discovery.

Police said the helicopter had been en route from Howden Hut to Milford Sound in difficult weather conditions when it lost radio contact with the Milford radio tower.

Insp Olaf Jensen said their thoughts were with the families and they hoped the discovery of the wreckage would bring some closure for them.

In April 2004, more than 200 people gathered at a village hall in Toddington, near Cheltenham, for a memorial service.

Ms Timings, who worked as a furniture buyer in London, had been on a three-month trip to New Zealand.

http://www.bbc.co.uk

How Piaggio Aero Started Marketing From Scratch: CEO and CMO John Bingham on defining four core brand values and building a brand story at the CMO Summit

Cessna 182D Skylane, N61LN: Accident occurred November 17, 2012 in Bondurant, Wyoming

NTSB Identification: WPR13FA053 
 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, November 17, 2012 in Bondurant, WY
Aircraft: CESSNA 182D, registration: N61LN
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 November 17, 2012, about 1345 mountain standard time, a Cessna 182D, N61LN, was substantially damaged when it collided with terrain south of Bondurant, Wyoming. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. The private pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was fatally injured. Visual and instrument meteorological conditions prevailed throughout the route of flight and a flight plan was not filed. The cross-country flight originated from Stevensville, Montana, about 1130 with an intended destination of Pinedale, Wyoming.

Information provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) revealed that the family of the pilot contacted the FAA on the evening of November 17, 2012, after they became concerned when the pilot had not arrived at his intended destination. The FAA subsequently issued an Alert Notification (ALNOT). The Civil Air Patrol, United States Air Force, and local law enforcement, commenced search and rescue operations throughout the area of the pilot's intended flight path. The wreckage was located by aerial units on the afternoon of November 24, 2012.

Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane impacted mountainous terrain approximately 35 miles west of the flights intended destination. The wreckage debris path was about 133 feet in length and oriented on a magnetic heading of about 200 degrees at an elevation of about 10,150 feet. All major structural components of the airplane were located within the debris path.

The wreckage will be recovered to a secure location for further examination.

IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 61LN        Make/Model: C182      Description: 182, Skylane
  Date: 11/17/2012     Time: 0000

  Event Type: Accident   Highest Injury: Fatal     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Destroyed

LOCATION
  City: BONDURANT   State: WY   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
  AIRCRAFT CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES, THE 1 PERSON ON BOARD WAS 
  FATALLY INJURED, SUBJECT OF AN ALERT NOTICE ISSUED 11/17/12, WRECKAGE 
  LOCATED 15 MILES FROM BONDURANT, WY

INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   1
                 # Crew:   1     Fat:   1     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    
                 # Pass:   0     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    


OTHER DATA
  Activity: Unknown      Phase: Unknown      Operation: OTHER


  FAA FSDO: CASPER, WY  (NM04)                    Entry date: 11/26/2012 

Courtesy photo

 Search crews looking for a missing plane in Wyoming are coping with deep snow and low clouds. The plane departed from the Stevensville Airport on Saturday.

 JACKSON, Wyo. – Crews searching for a small plane missing for a week in the rugged terrain of the Upper Hoback found wreckage of the aircraft and the body of its pilot, Sublette County sheriff’s officials said Saturday.

The sheriff’s office said the only person on board, 63-year-old Miles McGinnis, died in the plane crash near the Lincoln and Sublette County line. He and his single-engine Cessna 182 were reported missing a week ago when it failed to arrive in Pinedale on the afternoon of Nov. 17.

McGinnis was flying to Wyoming from Stevensville, the Jackson Hole News and Guide reported.

An air crew from Teton County found the wreckage more than a mile from the location of the last radar contact with the plane, in the Wyoming Range, and a ground crew hiked to the crash site. The sheriff’s office said search crews had been in that area of the Upper Hoback earlier in the week but the debris field had been covered by snow, which melted during recent warmer temperatures.

Search and rescue teams from both counties had spent the past week searching the area for the La Barge pilot and his single-engine Cessna. The Sublette County Sheriff’s Office began distributing fliers Wednesday for help from hunters and hikers.

Authorities plan to recover the body Sunday. Federal transportation and aviation officials will investigate the crash.

http://missoulian.com

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Searchers plan to return to the sky again on Thanksgiving Day in the hunt for a small plane missing in western Wyoming.

Stan Skrabut of the Civil Air Patrol says three fixed-wing aircraft and a helicopter found no sign of the plane Wednesday.

He says high winds forced the planes to land earlier than planned Wednesday, but the helicopter stayed aloft longer.

The Sublette County Sheriff’s Office says the 63-year-old pilot, Myles McGinnis of LaBarge, Wyo., was the only person aboard the Cessna 182. McGinnis left Stevensville on Saturday bound for Pinedale, but his plane disappeared from radar between Jackson and Bondurant.

http://missoulian.com

Small airports gamble with revenue guarantees

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Officials in central Missouri thought a $3 million revenue guarantee to American Airlines would be their ticket to expanded service at a regional airport serving both the state capital of Jefferson City and a flagship public university in Columbia.

Instead, the guarantee backfired when Delta Airlines said it was ending service at Columbia Regional Airport just months after adding flights to and from its Atlanta hub. The carrier said it could no longer operate in Columbia at a competitive disadvantage.

The airline courtship and subsequent break-up is a familiar one to elected officials and business brokers from northern California to the Florida Keys. Airlines are increasingly insisting on local government subsidies before they will expand service to airports in smaller cities and rural areas.

http://www.news-sentinel.com

Rockwell Commander 690A, N690SM - Superstitions plane crash: 1 year later

 
APACHE JUNCTION, Ariz. - It's tough to forget this day a year ago when a terrible plane crash in the Superstition Mountains claimed the lives of six people, including three children for the east valley and their father.

She's one of the strongest people I've ever met.  Losing three children in an instant, left to carry on with the memories, the questions and the loss.

Karen Perry returned to the Superstition Mountains this week.

"As much as I love the mountain, my children died there too, so it's very emotional for me."

She sees it everyday -- right outside her front door.  She's hiked to the crash site twice.

"Obviously some kind soul that came left a memorial here and left some toys and pictures," she said.

Perry will return again this weekend.

"It's emotional for me because to me, that's the grave site of my children."

A year since that awful night and the painful days that followed.

Does it feel like a year to her?

Karen replied, "It's been surreal.  No it doesn't to me..like it happened yesterday."

Perry's children -- Morgan, 9, Logan, 8, and Luke, 6, boarded a plane with their father Shawn to spend Thanksgiving in Safford.  Minutes after departing Mesa's Falcon Field, the plan inexplicably plowed into the mountain, killing all six on board.

"It's not something that goes away, losing your kids is not something you get over."

She was sick in bed that night.  Her nanny had dropped the kids off at the airport.  She awoke to hear the phone ringing.

"I got a phone call from the children's nanny at about 8 p.m. who'd seen the news," she said.

For moths afterwards, she was in a fog.

"Remember bits and pieces but it's almost like being in an accident yourself and you know waking up in the hospital and not having a lot of memory of what happened, I guess it's our way of protecting ourselves from the pain of it.  I think two or three months went by before I have any recollection of what happened on a daily basis."

What she does remember, clearly, is how the community grieved along with her.

"Big boxes of mail started coming in from the post office and they would leave big boxes everyday..I was very touched," she said.  "The way the community and really the whole world reached out to me after the accident."

In the years since the crash, she's discovered hundreds of videos and photos of her children.  She rarely looked at them when they were alive -- she was too busy with life, too busy raising them.

"It's very fun for me to go look through their photos.  I know some people can't do that, but I've got lots of videos and lots of photos and it makes me smile."

After the crash, she stumbled upon a treasure Luke had left her.

"My youngest got ahold of my computer and got ahold of a photo.  He took hundreds of pictures of himself and left that as a gift to me."

Karen wants to know every detail of the crash, no matter how painful.

In May, we went to a Phoenix salvage yard to view the wreckage for the first time.

One of the many difficult steps she's taken in the past 365 days.

She's hiked up to the crash site twice in the past year -- an eight hour trip.

"It gives me a sense of peace to go up there and a sense of peace to come here..it's a memory for me and it brings me closer to the last time I saw them," she said.

And often, she comes to a certain spot.

"For me it's more comforting to be near their memories and close to where they passed away."

If there's one thing she's learned in the past year, it's take nothing for granted.

"Appreciate what you have and be grateful for it. I'm so grateful that I had those children even for the short amount of time I had them with me."

And she's grateful to the community that helped her make it through this past year.

"Thank you so much for all the support and love.  It's just been overwhelming it's been wonderful to see that side of people."

Somehow, she's moved forward.  Returning to her job as a flight attendant and she's in a relationship.

"I met a wonderful man back in May when I went back to work and that's made a huge difference and it's helped me in healing, it's helped me appreciate everything in my life," she said.

Karen says she is so touched by how the entire community and complete strangers have reached out to her after the crash.  She adds that the outpouring of support got her through this.

Story and video:   http://www.myfoxphoenix.com

NTSB Identification: WPR12MA046
Nonscheduled 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, November 23, 2011 in Apache Junction, AZ
Aircraft: ROCKWELL 690, registration: N690SM
Injuries: 6 Fatal.

NTSB Preliminary Report:   http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20111124X85300&key=1

Piper PA-28-180 Archer, N40781: Accident occurred November 21, 2012 in Hillsdale, Michigan

NTSB Identification: CEN13FA067 
 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, November 21, 2012 in Hillsdale, MI
Aircraft: PIPER PA-28-180, registration: N40781
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 November 21, 2012, approximately 1820 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-28-180, N40781, registered to the pilot, impacted trees and terrain while on approach to the Hillsdale Municipal Airport (JYM), Hillsdale, Michigan. The private pilot, who was the sole occupant, sustained fatal injuries. Night visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed in the vicinity and a flight plan was not filed for the cross country flight being conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The flight originated about 1700 from the Lebanon-Warren County Airport, Lebanon, Ohio.

Minutes prior to the accident, about 18 miles from the airport, the pilot contacted Hillsdale on UNICOM frequency and requested that the lights for runway 28 be turned on. The airport manager who was monitoring the UNICOM turned on the lights. He reported that the pilot sounded normal and estimated the weather conditions at the time of the call to be marginal VMC with haze.

Official sunset at Hillsdale was 1713 and official twilight was 1743.

The airplane wreckage was found about 1.25 miles east of the approach end of runway 28 at JYM. The initial impact points were found about 60 feet above the ground in trees. The debris path extended about 700 feet through the trees and the airplane was found resting on its left side, with the engine embedded in the ground at a shallow angle. The approximate heading of the path through the trees was 255 degrees magnetic. The fuselage and empennage section were found primarily intact with its left wing separated and folded under the aft portion of the fuselage. Local law enforcement officers who initially responded to the accident site confirmed a strong odor of fuel within the wreckage.

The aircraft wreckage was recovered from the scene and relocated to a secure hangar at the Lenawee County airport (ADG) on November 23, 2012.

ADAMS TWP., MI — Investigators do not yet know what caused Wednesday's plane crash that killed a Clark Lake pilot.

Clarence James Avery's Piper PA-28 single-engine airplane crashed in a wooded area under unknown circumstances, said Eric Weiss, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board.

The NTSB is investigating. A preliminary report should be completed in about two weeks, Weiss said.

The plane crashed about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday near Bacon and Bird Lake roads, according to the Hillsdale County Sheriff's Office. Avery, 75, took off from the Hillsdale Municipal Airport about 11:30 a.m. that morning. Avery was the only passenger.

Married to his wife Cyma for 52 years, the couple had two children and five grandchildren. Avery's "great joy was spending time with his family," according to his obituary. He had many friends in the antiquing community. 

"He especially relished the opportunity to share his passion for flying with his children and grandchildren," his obituary stated. 

Services will be at Borek Jennings Funeral Home's Braun Chapel, 137 S. Main Street, Brooklyn. There will be visitation from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday. A farewell service will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at the chapel with visitation an hour before. 

In honor of Avery, donations may be made to a charity of the donor's choosing, the obituary stated.

IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 40781        Make/Model: PA28      Description: PA-28 CHEROKEE, ARROW, WARRIOR, ACHER, D
  Date: 11/22/2012     Time: 0033

  Event Type: Accident   Highest Injury: Fatal     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Substantial

LOCATION
  City: HILLSDALE   State: MI   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
  AIRCRAFT CRASH UNDER UNKNOW CIRCUMSTANCES VICINITY OF HILLSDALE AIRPORT, 
  HILLSDALE, MI

INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   1
                 # Crew:   0     Fat:   1     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    
                 # Pass:   0     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:    


OTHER DATA
  Activity: Pleasure      Phase: Unknown      Operation: OTHER


  FAA FSDO: DETROIT, MI  (GL23)                   Entry date: 11/23/2012 

 http://registry.faa.gov/N40781

http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/photo

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N40781

A 75-year-old man is dead after his plane crashed in Hillsdale County on Wednesday night. 

 Sheriff's deputies say Clarence James Avery died when his single engine plane went down in Adams Township.

The crash happened in a wooded area near the intersection of Bacon and Bird Lake Roads around 6:30 p.m.

Avery was the only person on board the aircraft.

Representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration have taken over the investigation to find out what caused the plane to go down.

http://www.wlns.com

A Clark Lake man has died after his small plane crashed in Hilldale County yesterday.

The Hillsdale County Sheriff's Department says Clarence James Avery, 75, was killed when his small engine plane crashed in Adams Township, northwest of the intersection of Bacon and Bird Lake roads.

Avery was the only person in the plane.

The cause of the crash is being investigated by the FAA.

http://www.wilx.com