Monday, November 25, 2013

Plane spotters miss flights: Auckland Airport

Some of the best areas for watching planes arriving and departing Auckland Airport, including the two viewing decks on Puhinui Rd, will be closed tomorrow morning.

A no stopping zone will also be in place from Campana Rd.

That's because the airport is running an exercise to test its response to a plane crashing into the Manukau Harbour.

Airport compliance and quality assurance manager Roy Robertson says public safety along Puhinui Rd is a major priority during the exercise.

"If someone is gawking and then has an accident, that's not what it's about."

Mr Robertson says the viewing platforms will be closed from 7am and hopefully reopen by 12.30pm.

Auckland Airport Emergency Services, St John Ambulance, Fire Service and police are among the groups involved.

Source:   http://www.stuff.co.nz


Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, Tropic Air P2-SAH: Accident occurred November 25, 2013 near Kibeni, Papua New Guinea

http://www.aic.gov.pg/pdf/AIC13-1008%20P2-SAH%20Preliminary.pdf

PRELIMINARY REPORT

AIC13-1008

PAPUA NEW GUINEA


ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION COMMISSION


AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT REPORT

Tropic Air P2-SAH

Cessna Corporation C208B Grand Caravan
Kibeni, Western Province

PAPUA NEW GUINEA


25 November 2013

The Papua New Guinea Accident Investigation Commission (AIC) was informed of the accident by PNG Airservices Ltd on 25 November 2013 and commenced an on-site investigation. This Preliminary Report, made publicly available on XX December 2013 was produced by the AIC, PO Box 1700, Boroko, NCD, Papua New Guinea. The report is based upon the investigation carried out to date by the AIC in accordance with Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation, Papua New Guinea (PNG)Civil Aviation Act 2010, and the Papua New Guinea (PNG)Civil Aviation Rules. It contains only basic factual and circumstantial information on the accident and does not contain analysis of that information. Readers are advised that the AIC investigates for the sole purpose of enhancing aviation safety. Consequently, AIC reports are confined to matters of safety significance and may be misleading if used for any other purpose. Information in AIC reports and recommendations is provided to promote aviation safety. In no case is it intended to imply blame or liability. Copying or reprinting this report for further distribution in the interests of aviation safety, acknowledging the AICas the source, is encouraged.

The occurrence

On 25 November 2013, a Cessna Corporation C208B Grand Caravan, registered P2-SAH( SAH) and operated by Tropic Air, departed Kamusi, Western Province, for Purari River, Gulf Province, at approximately 13151 Local Mean Time (LMT)on a charter flight under the instrument flight rules (IFR). The aircraft was carrying the pilot and nine passengers (one of whom, in the right pilot seat,was a pilot about to begin training with the operator)plus freight and baggage. Earlier in the day, the aircraft had departed Port Moresby for Kamusi from where it flew to Hivaro and back to Kamusi
before the accident flight. SAH was due to continue from Purari River to Vailala and Port Moresby(Figure 1).   The accident flight route is shown in Figure 2.

At Kamusi,the aircraft was refuelled from drums.Takeoff and climb from Kamusi were normal and the pilot levelled off at 9,000 ft above mean sea level (AMSL)and completed the appropriate checklist. Between Kamusi and Purari River the terrain is mostly flat and forest covered with areas of
swampland and slow - moving tidal rivers (Figure 3). Habitation is very sparse with occasional small villages on the rivers. The pilot recalled the weather was generally good in the area with a cloud base of 3,000 ft and good visibility between build-ups.

Approximately two minutes in to the cruise there was a loud ‘pop’ followed by a complete loss of engine power. After configuring the aircraft for best glide speed at 95 knots, the pilot turned the aircraft right towards the coast and rivers and completed the Phase 1 memory recall items
2 for engine failure in flight. He was assisted by the passenger in the right pilot seat, who switched on the Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT)and began broadcasting ‘mayday’ on the area frequency 3. Checking the database in the Global Positioning System (GPS), the pilot found the airstrip at Kibeni(Figures 4and 5) on the eastern side of the Palbuna River. Kibeni airstrip is disused,uneven, and short but it was the only open ground in the area on which the pilot could attempt a forced landing.

The pilot, as sisted by the passenger next to him, tried unsuccessfully to restart the engine using the procedure in the aircraft’s Quick Reference Handbook (QRH). The passenger continued to give position reports and to communicate with other aircraft. At about 3,000 ft AMSL the pilot asked for radio silence on the area frequency so he could concentrate on the approach to Kibeni airstrip, flying a left hand circuit to land in a south westerly direction. He  selected full flaps during the final stages of the approach, which arrested the aircraft’s rate of descent and caused it to float. The wheels contacted the ground three times (Figure 5)but this did not slow the aircraft enough to enable the pilot to stop it before the end of the airstrip. 


In order to clear the trees between the airstrip and the river, the pilot elected to pull up on the control column.  The aircraft became airborne again, damaging the crown of a coconut palm as it passed over the trees between the end of the airstrip and the river. The pilot turned hard left and pushed forward on the control column to avoid stalling 4the aircraft. He levelled the wings before the aircraft impacted the water.

The aircraft came to rest inverted (Figure 7)and partially submerged, and immediately filled with water. After a short delay while he gained his bearings under water, the pilot was able to undo his harness and open the left cockpit door. He swam to the surface, opened the door at the rear of the fuselage, and helped the surviving passengers to safety on the river bank.He mad e several attempts to reach those still inside the aircraft. When he had determined there was nothing further he could do to reach them, he administered First Aid to the survivors with materials from the aircraft’s First Aid kit. After approximately 20 minutes, villagers arrived in a canoe and transported the pilot and surviving passengers across the river. About 90 minutes after the accident, they were airlifted by helicopter to Kopi, located 44 km north east of Kibeni.

Flight crew information

The pilot was 39 years old and held a PNG Commercial Pilot Licence issued on 2 October 2012 and a Class 1 medical without restriction valid until 21 August 2014. He was endorsed to fly Cessna C208 type aircraft. He had a total of approximately 2,200 flying hours of which 800 hours were on the Cessna C208. Aircraft information The aircraft was a Cessna Corporation C208B Grand Caravan, serial no. 208B1263, manufactured in the USA in July 2007. It was powered by a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-114A turbopropeller engine, serial no.PCE-PC1411, fitted with a McCauley 3GFR34C703 three - bladed variable pitch propeller.  It was registered in Papua New Guinea as P2-SAH on 27 September 2007 and its Certificate of Registration and Certificate of Airworthiness were both valid at the time of the accident. The aircraft was seriously damaged during the accident
by impact forces and immersion in water. The left wing became completely detached during the impact sequence and, although the pilot reported that it floated back to the accident site on the incoming tide in the minutes after the impact, it could not be located by the AIC despite a search downstream by helicopter. During the evening of 27 November 2013, the aircraft wreckage was lifted onto a barge (Figure 6) and transported to Panakawa (27 km south of Kamusi).


Representatives of the engine manufacturer travel led to Panakawa on 1 December 2013 and removed the engine and associated components under the supervision of the AIC. The engine was transported by air to Port Moresby where initial investigation revealed substantial internal damage.

Weight and balance

The exact quantity of fuel on board and takeoff weight at Kamusi are not known. The Daily Flight Record (DFR) form on which this information was recorded was recovered from the wreckage but it was too badly damaged by immersion in the river to be legible. The aircraft manifest forms completed before departure from Hivaro and Kamusi indicated that SAH departed Kamusi with 51 kg of freight and baggage in addition to the nine passengers and the pilot. The aircraft was loaded according to the approved ‘quick trim ’ system detailed in the Aircraft Flight Manual (AFM) and the pilot reported that, on departure from Kamusi,   it was approximately 200 kg under its maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 3,900 kg. Flight recorder information The aircraft was fitted with an Altair ADAS Plus engine condition trend monitoring (ECTM) unit serial no. 1135. The ECTM unit was submerged in the river at Kibeni for approximately 54 hours until the aircraft was lifted onto the barge. It was then removed from the wreckage, washed in freshwater, wrapped in damp cloths, and sealed in a plastic bag. The following day, 28 November 2013, it was transported to Port Moresby and placed in a bucket of fresh water at the AIC. On 29 November 2013, it was shipped to the manufacturer in the USA for data download. Aerodrome information The runway at Kibeni is oriented 030/021 degrees.  The landing distance available is 430 metres.  It is 120 ft above mean sea level (AMSL)and the surface is undulating and overgrown with grass and weeds. It was formerly used when the area was being actively logged but has been disused for some time. The threshold of runway 21 is approximately 60 feet above the river, with the tops of coconutpalms and other trees above the level of the runway.

Further investigation

The investigation is continuing and will include

  • analysis of the operator’s maintenance system and maintenance documentation
  • data from the aircraft’selectronic engine trend monitoring equipment
  • inspection of engine components including the compressor turbine discassembly
  • disassembly of the compressorrotor assembly for visual inspection
  • precautionary inspection of the engine controls and accessories (propeller governor, overspeed governor, fuel pump, fuel control unit, fuel heater)
http://www.aic.gov.pg/pdf/AIC13-1008%20P2-SAH%20Preliminary.pdf


Adam Reid


The mother of an Australian man killed in a plane crash in Papua New Guinea lost another child earlier this year. 

 Melbourne man Adam Reid, 38, died when the Cessna Grand Caravan operated by his employer Tropicair crashed in PNG's Gulf province on Monday.

PNG nationals Stanley Kovi and Joyce Kori were also killed in the crash. Six other passengers and the pilot survived.

Mr Reid's older brother Matthew was killed in a head-on collision with a semi-trailer in New South Wales earlier this year.

Their cousin Noel Nealon says the family is devastated, especially their mother Cheryl.

"What do you say to a mother who lost two of her three children that she cherished?" Mr Nealon said.

"All she wanted to be was a mother and to lose them is such a tragedy."

Mr Reid was an observer on the flight and had recently relocated from Melbourne to PNG to get more pilot hours.

Mr Nealon says his cousin dreamt of becoming a pilot for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

"He wasn't even flying. He was just an air observer in the plane so whether he needed to be there or not, but unfortunately it happened," Mr Nealon said.


Pilot issued mayday call


The CEO of PNG's Accident Investigation Commission, David Inau, says the pilot made a forced landing after experiencing engine trouble.

"The pilot did put out a mayday call and did state that he was having engine problems," he said.

Investigators are today trying to move the submerged wreckage of the plane onto a barge to retrieve the bodies of those killed in the crash.

Tropicair has suspended its operations while an investigation is carried out.


http://www.abc.net.au

 The airline involved in a crash in Papua New Guinea which killed three people, including an Australian man, has suspended its operations.

The airline involved in a crash in Papua New Guinea which killed three people, including an Australian man, has suspended its operations.

Victorian man Adam Reid, 38, died when the Cessna Grand Caravan operated by his employer Tropicair crashed in Papua New Guinea's Gulf province on Monday.

PNG nationals Stanley Kovi and Joyce Kori were also killed in the crash. Six other passengers and the pilot survived.

Tropicair has suspended its operations while an investigation is carried out.

In a statement the company says the plane made a forced landing in a river but gave no indication why.

Tropicair chief executive Tony Honey says it is too early to draw conclusions about the cause of the crash until the facts are established by independent investigators.


http://www.radioaustralia.net.au

A MELBOURNE mother is reeling after suffering the loss of a second son in just 12 months, following a plane crash in Papua New Guinea. 

 Adam Reid, 37, was one of the passengers killed after a Cessna 208 Caravan flown by Tropicair reported an engine failure.

It would later veer into a river after attempting an emergency landing.

Of the 10 on board, seven escaped including the pilot.

Three others - Adam, an infant and a third person - perished after being trapped underwater inside the plane.

So far it is unclear if Adam was the only Australian on board.

The loss was compounded for Adam's mother Cheryl Reid, who lost her other son Matthew in a horrifying head-on crash near Ballina only nine months ago.

According to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, the pilot sent a mayday call from 30 nautical miles west of Kikori, which itself is 500km north-west of Port Moresby, at 5pm on Monday.

Mrs Reid learned of the crash soon after from Tropicair management.

Adam was acting as an observer in the flight as part of his life-long ambition to become a pilot for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

Speaking on behalf of the family, Adam's cousin Noel Nealon told APN of the devastation felt by Adam's mother to have lost a second child "she loved with all her heart".

Mr Nealon said Adam was a quiet and private man, but one who adored his nephew.

"He has a very special nephew named Hudson, who he absolutely adored," Mr Nealon said.

He joined Tropicair just three weeks ago, excited by the challenge of flying over the notoriously challenging Papua New Guinea landscape.

The ATSB is yet to learn whether its help will be requested for the ensuing investigation.

Adam is survived by parents Cheryl and Graeme Reid, sister Julie Townsend, her husband Adam, and their son Hudson.


http://www.centraltelegraph.com.au

An Australian man is among three people killed in a plane crash in Papua New Guinea.

The single-engined Cessna Caravan operated by Tropicair crashed into a river while flying from Kimusi to Purari in Gulf province yesterday afternoon.

The Accident Investigation Commission says 10 people were on board and seven survived.

The Department of Foreign Affairs has confirmed that a 38-year-old Victorian man was one of the three people who died in the crash.

A spokeswoman says consular officials are in contact with the man's family.

The other two victims were Papua New Guinean nationals.

The ABC understands rescuers have spent today trying to retrieve the bodies of the dead from the submerged wreckage of the plane.

The survivors were initially taken to a nearby Oil Search camp and then moved to the company's medical clinic in neighboring Southern Highlands province.

Tropcair says it is waiting to contact the families of those who died before making a public statement.

The company has been flying in PNG for 15 years.


http://www.abc.net.au

Runway extension getting mistake-proofed: Gary/Chicago International Airport (KGYY), Indiana

In a cover-up of epic proportions, the Gary/Chicago International Airport is spreading blue tarps over its 1,900-foot runway extension in order to ward off pilots who might mistake it for the end of the main runway.

Any pilot trying to land on the extension would be in for a rude shock, as a railroad embankment carrying Canadian National trains still separates the extension from the main runway.

AECOM project manager John Lukas and airport engineer Ken Ross briefed the Gary airport authority on the cover-up project Monday, noting it might add $80,000 to the cost of the expansion project.

The blue tarp is going on top of black sand the airport already spread on the runway at the Federal Aviation Administration's request, Ross said. The blue tarps will be weighted down with sandbags.

The airport had suggested erecting billboards or installing red lights to ward off pilots, but the FAA balked at both those suggestions, Ross said.

So now it is going with an FAA-mandated solution reminiscent of the environmental artworks of the Cristo and Jeanne-Claude team, whose artwork has included covering whole coastlines with fabric and constructing curtains across river valleys.

It could be some time before the existing 7,000-foot main runway and the extension are finally joined, as the airport has run into problems with removing pollution from the site and with nailing down final railroad agreements that will allow Canadian National trains to move off the embankment.


Source:   http://www.nwitimes.com/

New York Air National Guard 174th Attack Wing to resume training flight operations 2 weeks after drone crash

FORT DRUM -- Nearly two weeks after a military reaper drone crashed into Lake Ontario, the New York Air National Guard's 174th Attack Wing will resume local area training flight operations from its base at Fort Drum.

Operations were suspended after a MQ-9 drone, which took off from the Wheeler-Sack Army Airfield at Fort Drum Tuesday, November 12, crashed in a routine training mission into Lake Ontario that afternoon.

The Air Force Accident Investigation Board (AIB) continues to investigate the cause and circumstances leading up to the crash, which happened about 20 miles northeast of the Port of Oswego.

Last week, members of the Sandy Creek Fire Department helped the Coast Guard, U.S. Navy divers and Air Force search for remaining debris along the shoreline, in the area of Jefferson and Lewis Counties. The search was halted on Friday.

The Air National Guard says the debris is not hazardous, but should be handled with caution. If you come across what you think could be wreckage, you're asked to call the Emergency Operations Center at (315) 233-2257, or 233-2258.

Colonel Greg Semmel, 174th Attack Wing Commander thanks military personnel and civilians for their efforts in the search and response to the crash.

"From local first responders in the Sandy Creek Fire Department to the assistance of the Coast Guard and U.S. Navy and Air Force efforts to determine the cause of this mishap and prevent future issues. Our decision to return to training flights is based on a careful review all facets of our MQ-9 flying program over the past two weeks, along with consultations with our training and technical experts and those from the Air National Guard and Air Combat Command," Col. Semmel said in a release to CNY Central.

The 174th Attack Wing is home to an Air Force formal training site for MQ-9 pilots, sensor operators and maintainers.

The investigation is expected to take about a month; Results will not be made public.


Story and Comments/Reaction:  http://www.cnycentral.com

S. Korea to prohibit operation of airlines in case of accident

SEJONG, Nov. 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will move to significantly improve its aviation safety that will include a temporary halt of operations for airlines involved in accidents, the government said Tuesday.

Following its final decision, expected at the end of the year, the country will also prohibit the operation of airlines on the blacklist of unsafe airlines, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The move follows the crash landing of a passenger aircraft operated by South Korea's Asiana Airlines at San Francisco International Airport in July that led to the deaths of three passengers.

"The comprehensive measure tabled by the Aviation Safety Committee consists of some 40 separate tasks that include the establishment of safety management by airlines, strengthening the safety of low-cost carriers, and introduction of a safety certification system for helicopters and small aircraft," the ministry said in a press release.

The recommendations will officially be submitted on Friday for consideration by the ministry, a ministry official said.

According to the ministry, the number of airline accidents more than doubled over the past five years to 23 between 2009 and 2013 from 11 during the 2004-2008 period with the number of accidents involving human casualties jumping to seven from just one over the cited period.

Of the total 34 accidents over the past 10 years, 21 cases, or 64 percent, involved helicopters or small aircraft.

Still, such a rise may have been somewhat inevitable as the number of flights departing from South Korea spiked over 50 percent from 156,916 in 2004 to 234,668 in 2012.

In 2012, South Korea reported 8.5 accidents per 1 million departures, more than double the global average of 3.2 per million, according to the ministry.

To help cut the accident rate to the world's lowest of 2.66 accidents per million departures by 2017, the safety committee recommended the government temporarily suspend the operation of airlines involved in accidents.

Currently, an airline is usually fined 500 million won (US$471,000) if the number of deaths in an accident does not exceed five, according to the ministry.


Source:   http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr

Edmonton museum awaiting permission to fly old plane 33 kilometres

EDMONTON - The Alberta Aviation Museum in Edmonton is pleading with Transport Canada to fast-track permission to fly an old Boeing 737 to an airport in Villeneuve, just 33 kilometres away.

The museum is currently located at the City Centre Airport near Edmonton's downtown.

However, that airport has been decommissioned and is scheduled for redevelopment and so the museum is relocating its aircraft to Villeneuve, a small community to the northwest of the city.

Executive director Thomas Hendricks says dismantling, trucking or reassembling the old plane is not an option because of the expense involved.

Hendricks says the bird is worth $1.6 million and if it can't be flown to Villeneuve, the museum will have no choice but to destroy it.

What also complicates things is that tenants at the airport only have until this weekend to clear out, and usually it takes months for Transport Canada to decide on such a request.

The city is allowing the plane to sit in a warm hangar to help out the inspectors and make things easier to move quickly should permission be granted.

The plane, which had been in service from 1979 to 2005, was donated to the museum.


http://www.calgaryherald.com

Search continues in Nottawasaga Bay for plane missing since November 7: Cessna 182P Skylane, C-FIMQ

 

Oscar Burnside, 64, of Owen Sound, is the pilot missing over Georgian Bay after his  Cessna 182P Skylane apparently crashed north of Wasaga Beach on Thursday Nov. 7 2013.



at 20:09 on November 25, 2013, EST.

The Canadian Press

TINY TOWNSHIP, Ont. - Provincial police say they are continuing a marine search of Nottawasaga Bay for a missing plane and pilot.

The 1968 Cessna 182, being flown by 64-year-old Wilfred Oscar Burnside Owen Sound, left Cornwall on the afternoon of Nov. 7, and was to arrive in Owen Sound that night.

The plane failed to arrive in Owen Sound and has been the subject of a search that has involved the Canadian Armed Forces, RCAF, Canadian Coast Guard, OPP and private citizens.

To date, only small pieces of debris that belong to a Cessna aircraft have been located along the shoreline in Tiny Township.

Anyone who may have seen debris from an aircraft in the Nottawasaga Bay area is asked to contact provincial police.

Content Provided By Canadian Press. 


Owen Sound family coming to grips with loss of missing pilot 

 TINY TWP. — An aircraft that went missing Thursday is believed to be at the bottom of Nottawasaga Bay, said Const. David Hobson with Southern Georgian Bay OPP.
Debris from a Cessna 182 was found along the shores of Tiny Township, Saturday morning.


The search for the missing aircraft has now become a missing person investigation.
“At this point, it leads us to believe that it's crashed into the water,” Hobson said.


"The search for clues has been assisted by strong prevailing west and northwest winds which have produced debris results," he said Sunday morning.

"Some of the debris has been thrown up 40 feet from the water line."

OPP restricted their investigation on Sunday to foot patrols along the shoreline between Conc. 4 and Conc. 8.


The OPP have not located the pilot, identified as Wildfred Oscar Burnside, 64, of Owen Sound, the aircraft, or the crash scene, Hobson added. Burnside's plane is a white, with red trim 1968 Cessna 182, bearing the registration number CFIMQ.


“(The pilot is) presumed to be a missing person,” he said.


Burnside, known to family and friends as Oscar, was reported missing when the single-engine Cessna failed to arrive at the Billy Bishop Regional Airport, east of Owen Sound, at its scheduled time.
The plane left Cornwall at 5:10 p.m. on Thursday and was scheduled to arrive near Owen Sound at 7:55 p.m.                          

 
Const. Kris Beatty said police employed a 19-foot boat Saturday to try to find the plane or at least better pinpoint where it might have crashed.


“The weather’s hampering our search efforts,” said Beatty as he and other OPP officers packed up their gear Saturday after a day of searching under rainy, cold and windy conditions.


Beatty said officers combed a large section of beach from Sprat Point to Jackson Beach Park to try to find possible debris from the plane.


“We had officers walking along the beach and also had two ATVs driving along the shore to try to find any debris,” Beatty said, pointing out police also canvassed nearby homes to try to find somebody who may have found debris in their yard.


“We don’t have a lot of answers right now. Basically, we’re doing recovery work."

Two aircraft from the Canadian Forces Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Trenton and two from the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association were dispatched Thursday to aid in the search.
The search, which involved more than 40, continued most of Friday.


Police concentrated their efforts in the area west of Midland based on the pilot's cellphone company.


"The aircraft did have and electronic locater transmitter but there was no indication of a distress activation. However it is an older model and not as reliable," said David Elias of RCAF media relations.


On Saturday, members of the Southern Georgian Bay OPP and OPP Central Region Snowmobile ATV and Vessel Enforcement (S.A.V.E.) team were scouring the shoreline on ATVS and on foot from Concession Road 4 to Concession Road 8.


“They are searching for any pieces of debris and there have been a few pieces of debris consistent with that of an aircraft that have washed up on shore this morning,” Hobson said.


The OPP helicopter unit also conducted an aerial search of the shoreline.


“When we're able to ascertain where there may be an actual crash scene, should we be able to do that, we'll organize a plan at that point,” Hobson said.


Burnside's family is coming to grips with the tragic situation.


“It's a very difficult time for everyone, and we'll be feeling a lot better once the police locate the plane,” sister-in-law Sharon Burnside said late Saturday afternoon.

She said her brother-in-law had been in Stowe, Vermont, for a few days and was returning home.
He was  “a very confident guy” in the air, she said, and had had his private pilot's licence for 30 years.


Resigned to what they are presuming is Oscar Burnside's death, Sharon said “it's a big loss,” adding, “We don't quite know how we're going to get along without him.”


A long-time educator, businessman and real estate broker, Oscar Burnside was born in Markdale and graduated from West Hill Secondary School in Owen Sound.

He went onto teacher's college and earned a degree from the University of Western Ontario as well as an MBA from Syracuse University in New York,  his sister-in-law said.


“I've never met anybody with more energy who worked harder than he did,” she said.

“He was always working on some kind of new degree, and just in May he earned a post graduate certificate in real property evaluations from the University of British Columbia. He was always tackling some new area.”


In the late 1970s and early 80s, he owned Burnside Home Furnishings in Markdale and ran a business installing in-ground pools.

He also was a partner in Choice Realty Solutions Inc.


His education career included being principal of St. Vincent-Euphrasia school and Osprey Central. Before that he was vice-principal at Georgian Bay Secondary School in Meaford.

Oscar Burnside also taught at OSCVI, John Diefenbaker Secondary School, and started his teaching career at Sydenham school. In retirement, he also taught part-time at Georgian College.


He knew just about everybody, Sharon Burnside said.

“If you were having lunch with him, you could sort of anticipate there'd be a steady stream of people saying hello as they walked by the table. He did seem to know everyone.”


He was also just “one of these amazing people,” she said. “He could operate, drive, build or fix anything. He built his first house literally from the ground up, digging the trenches for the footings and pouring the cement by hand. He could fix anything, build anything. He was an amazing guy.”


Oscar also loved to ski, ride his motorcycle and loved to fly, she said. He was an accomplished musician, particularly on bass guitar, she said, and he loved hard rock music. 


Sharon recalled his “soft heart” in relaying a story about a cat he once picked up from the side of the road as an abandoned kitten.


“He was driving home one night, pouring rain, and he saw eyes at the side of the road and stopped, and it was this tiny tiny kitten somebody had abandoned along the way,” she said.

“He had a very big heart, and he was very generous with his time and his talent. It's a big loss.”


Story and Photos:  http://www.theobserver.ca

A forum tonight on noise from low-flying jets

The Town-Village Aircraft Safety Noise Abatement Committee plans to host a meeting Monday to discuss concerns over low-flying planes and ways to control jet noise in communities near Kennedy and LaGuardia airports.

The meeting is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. at the Village of Lawrence Yacht and Country Club, at 101 Causeway in Lawrence. Representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey have been invited to attend.

Earlier this month, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo directed the Port Authority to study aircraft noise over Long Island and hold public hearings about the issue. Cuomo ordered the work after vetoing a bill Nov. 13 that called for the study but needed approval from New Jersey lawmakers.

Residents have also voiced concerns on a Kennedy Airport runway expansion plan that calls for the threshold -- the touchdown point -- on runway 4L/22R to be extended, by 728 feet, to meet new federal requirements for a “runway safety area.”

Noise reduction advocates have also asked the Federal Aviation Administration to exempt Kennedy and LaGuardia airports from a proposed rule that would allow the agency to change flight procedures without conducting environmental impact studies.

New procedures from implementing the NextGen satellite-based air traffic control system could mean increased noise from landings and takeoffs, and from more aircraft flying at lower altitudes, advocates have said. For more information, call TVASNAC at 516-489-5000 ext. 3562.


Story and Comments/Reaction:  http://www.newsday.com

Piper PA-23-160 Apache, Aviation Consulting Expert Services Inc, N4016P: Accident occurred November 25, 2013 in Graniteville, South Carolina

http://registry.faa.gov/N4016P

NTSB Identification: ERA14FA049 
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Monday, November 25, 2013 in Graniteville, SC
Probable Cause Approval Date: 10/21/2015
Aircraft: PIPER PA-23-160, registration: N4016P
Injuries: 1 Fatal.

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.

During the initial climb after a night takeoff, the left engine lost power. A witness reported that the pilot attempted to return to the runway he had taken off from, but he lost control. The airplane descended, struck trees, and came to rest next to a taxiway that paralleled the departure runway.

Examination of the wreckage revealed that the airplane had not been configured for single engine flight; the left engine's propeller was not feathered, and the landing gear was down. Because the hydraulic pump was installed on the left engine, it would not have been operating after the engine lost power. Therefore, the pilot would have had to manually retract the landing gear by pumping the emergency pump handle 30 to 40 times. However, given the pilot's decision to return to the airport, he may have elected not to retract the landing gear. With the left engine's propeller not feathered and the landing gear down, the airplane would have rapidly decelerated unless the pilot lowered the airplane's nose to maintain airspeed. Additionally, in order to maintain control during the right turn, the pilot needed to counteract the tendency for the airplane's bank angle to increase due to the asymmetrical power from the right engine. The airplane's airspeed likely decreased below the single engine minimum controllable airspeed (Vmc), which resulted in the loss of control.

Before the accident, the pilot conveyed concerns about the airplane's left fuel valve control to two separate airframe and powerplant mechanics. During the conversations, he detailed his plans to troubleshoot and attempt to repair the problem himself. The mechanics urged the pilot not to perform the maintenance himself and to have the problem diagnosed by a knowledgeable certificated mechanic. The pilot was not a certificated mechanic and was not authorized to perform maintenance on the accident airplane.

Postaccident examination of the airplane's fuel system revealed that, although the left and right fuel valve controls were selected to the main tank positions, the left and right main fuel tank shutoff valves were closed, and the left and right auxiliary fuel tank shutoff valves were open. Therefore, the left and right engines were being supplied with fuel from their respective auxiliary tanks instead of from the main tanks. The fuel tanks were damaged; however, fuel was observed in the corners of the left and right main tanks and in the right auxiliary tank, but the left auxiliary fuel tank was devoid of fuel. Therefore, the left engine loss of power was due to fuel starvation.

Examination of the fuel valve control cable assemblies revealed that neither the left or right cable assembly was connected to its respective auxiliary fuel valve arm assembly, which controlled both the main and auxiliary fuel shutoff valves. Because the securing hardware was still in place and was undamaged, it is likely that the control cable assemblies had, at some point, been disconnected from the arm assemblies and not reconnected. This resulted in the engines receiving fuel from the auxiliary tanks when the fuel valve controls were selected to the main tank positions. Given the pilot's discussions with the mechanics, it is likely that he disconnected the control cable assemblies from the arm assemblies when he attempted to troubleshoot the problem.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The pilot's improper maintenance of the airplane's fuel system, which resulted a loss of power in the left engine due to fuel starvation. Also causal was the pilot's failure to maintain minimum controllable airspeed following the loss of engine power, which resulted in a loss of airplane control.

On November 25, 2013, about 1804 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-23-160, N4016P, was substantially damaged when it impacted trees after a loss of engine power during departure from Twin Lakes Airport (S17), Graniteville, South Carolina. The airline transport pilot was fatally injured. Night visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91.

According to a witness, prior to the flight the pilot checked all of the airplane's external lights and ran both engines for a long period of time while in front of the hangar where it was kept. He next observed the airplane depart from runway 6. During the takeoff, the airplane lifted off about 1,500 feet down the runway from the point where the takeoff run began.

After lifting off, the airplane turned abruptly to the left while climbing. When it was just above the approximately 90-foot high trees located on the north side of the field, the airplane appeared to enter an aerodynamic stall, strike the trees, and then fall to the ground. The witness believed the pilot was trying to turn back to the runway when the accident occurred.

According to another witness, who was in a hangar after the airplane departed from runway 6, he heard "chatter" on the radio in the hangar but could not understand what the accident pilot was saying. About 10 seconds later, the airplane passed behind the hangar he was in, sounding "low" to the ground and possibly running on one engine. Moments later he heard the airplane impact trees. The witness stated that he believed that the accident pilot may have been attempting to land on Rachel Avenue when the accident occurred.

PERSONNEL INFORMATION

According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and pilot records, the pilot held an airline transport pilot certificate with a rating for airplane multi-engine land, commercial privileges for airplane single engine land, and a flight instructor certificate with ratings for single, multiengine, and instrument airplane. He also held a ground instructor certificate with ratings for advanced and instrument, a repairman experimental aircraft builder certificate for a Sonex kit airplane he built, and a control tower operator certificate, which he was issued when he was previously employed as an air traffic controller. He did not hold an FAA mechanic certificate

His most recent FAA first-class medical certificate was issued on October 24, 2013. According to FAA and pilot records, he had accrued approximately 1,652 total hours of flight experience. Approximately 361 of those hours were in multi-engine airplanes, of which, 26 hours were in the accident airplane make and model.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

The accident aircraft was a twin engine, low wing airplane of metal construction. It was equipped with retractable landing gear and powered by two 160 horsepower, air cooled, normally aspirated engines equipped with two bladed constant speed propellers.

According to FAA airworthiness and registration records the airplane was manufactured in 1958 and was purchased by the pilot on May 9, 2013. Review of maintenance records revealed, it had been modified from its original configuration by the addition of numerous upgrades including updated avionics, an autopilot system, dual alternators, and dual vacuum pumps the airplane's most recent annual inspection was completed on August 1, 2013. At the time of the accident, the airplane had accrued 3675.6 total hours of operation.

METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION

The recorded weather at Aiken Municipal Airport (AIK), Aiken, South Carolina, located 9 nautical miles east of the accident site, at 1755, approximately 9 minutes prior to the accident, included: winds 070 at 5 knots, 10 miles visibility, overcast clouds at clouds at 3,000 feet, temperature 08 degrees C, dew point -03 degrees C, and an altimeter setting of 30.40 inches of mercury.

According to the United States Naval Observatory on the day of the accident, the moon had set at 1236 and was in its last quarter at 1428. Sunset occurred at 1720, and the end of civil twilight occurred at 1747.

AIRPORT INFORMATION

Twin Lakes Airport was a privately-owned fly-in residential community, located four miles northwest of the central business district of Graniteville, South Carolina. It was classified by the FAA as a non-towered public use airport. The airport elevation was 540 feet above mean sea level and there was one runway oriented in a 06/24 configuration. Runway 6 was asphalt, and in good condition. The total length was 4,000 feet long and 60 feet wide. It was marked with basic markings in good condition. Runway 6 was surrounded by buildings and trees, and the threshold was displaced by 390 feet on the approach end, and 421 feet on the departure end.

Obstacles were present off the approach end of the runway in the form of a 52-foot-tall tree, located 624 feet from the runway threshold, and 89 feet left of the centerline, which required an 8:1 slope to clear. The approach ratio to the displaced threshold was 20:1. Obstacles were also present on the departure end of the runway in the form of a 43-foot-tall tree, located 877 feet from the departure end of the runway, 187 feet left of the centerline, which took a 15:1 slope to clear.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

Accident Site Examination

The accident site was located north-northwest of the airport, at the edge of a forested area. Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane after striking trees and falling to the forest floor came into contact with the ground with its left wing, then nose, at an approximately 45-degree nose down attitude while turning to the left. It then slid approximately 15 feet, until it came into contact with the bases of some trees, where it came to rest in a nose down, left wing low attitude against their trunks. There was no appreciable wreckage path present, and all of the primary components of the airplane were collocated within 15 feet of the first point of ground impact, near where the airplane came to rest.

Wreckage Examination

Flight control continuity was established from the control wheel and rudder pedals in the cockpit and to all of the flight control surfaces. The fuselage and wings displayed multiple areas of crush and compression damage. The aft fuselage was bent about 20 degrees to the left of the fuselage centerline and the right wing was bent down and aft, and was partially separated at the wing root. The left wing was also partially separated at a point about 2 feet outboard of the wing root, was displaced aft, and was folded under the fuselage. The fuel tanks were damaged during the accident however, evidence of fuel being onboard the airplane was present in the form of fuel odors, and fuel being observed in the corners of the left and right main tanks, and the right auxiliary tank. No fuel was visible in the left auxiliary tank.

The master switch was in the on position, the flaps were retracted, and the landing gear was extended. The emergency hydraulic pump handle was stowed. The magneto switches were on, the carburetor heat controls were off, and the engine fuel primers were in and locked. The throttle control levers, propeller control levers, and mixture control levers were full forward prior to impact, and the left and right fuel valve controls were in the main tank positions.

Right Engine and Propeller Examination

The right engine remained attached to the airplane by the tubular engine mount. A tool was inserted in the vacuum pump drive pad and the drive train was rotated. Continuity of the crankshaft to the rear gears and to the valve train was confirmed. Compression and suction was observed on all engine cylinders. The interiors of the cylinders were examined using a lighted borescope and no anomalies were noted.

The carburetor remained attached to the engine. The bowl screw safety washers were in place and no fuel stains were noted on the external surfaces of the carburetor. The venturi was observed to be secure. About an ounce of blue liquid with an odor consistent with that of aviation gasoline was observed in the carburetor bowl. The liquid tested negative for water using water finding paste. No damage was noted to the brass floats or the other internal carburetor components. The carburetor fuel inlet screen was absent of debris. The engine driven fuel pump remained attached to the engine and no damage was noted and the pump would produce air at the outlet port when operated by hand.

Both magnetos remained attached to the engine and no damage was noted. The magnetos were removed and both produced spark from all electrode towers when rotated by hand. No damage was noted to the engine ignition harness, and the spark plugs electrodes were undamaged and displayed normal coloration.

Oil was observed in the engine and no debris was noted in the oil pressure screen. No damage was noted to the oil cooler or associated hoses.

The propeller remained attached to the engine crankshaft flange. One propeller blade displayed evidence of S-bending and was curved aft about 30-degrees at approximately the mid-span point of the blade, and curved forward approximately 20-degrees at a point about 8 inches inboard of the blade tip. The other propeller blade displayed chordwise scratching.

Left Engine and Propeller Examination

The engine remained attached to the airplane by the tubular engine mount. A tool was inserted in the vacuum pump drive pad and the drivetrain was able to be rotated. Continuity of the crankshaft to the rear gears and to the valve train was confirmed. Compression and suction were obtained from all engine cylinders. The interiors of the cylinders were examined using a lighted borescope and no anomalies were noted.

The carburetor was fractured across the throttle bore and partially separated from the engine. The bowl screw safety washers were in place and no fuel stains were noted on the external surfaces of the carburetor. The venturi was secure. About 2 teaspoons of blue liquid with an odor consistent with that of aviation gasoline was observed in the carburetor bowl. The liquid tested negative for water using water finding paste. No damage was noted to the brass floats or the other internal carburetor components. The carburetor fuel inlet screen was absent of debris.

The engine driven fuel pump remained attached to the engine and no damage was noted. The pump produced air at the outlet port when operated by hand. Partial disassembly of the pump revealed no damage to the rubber diaphragms or other internal components. Both magnetos remained attached to the engine and no damage was noted. The magnetos were removed and both produced spark from all electrode towers when rotated by hand. No damage was noted to the engine ignition harness, and the spark plugs electrodes were undamaged and displayed normal coloration.

Oil was observed in the engine and no debris was noted in the oil pressure screen. No damage was noted to the oil cooler or associated hoses.

The vacuum pump remained attached to the engine. No damage was noted, and when removed the pump produced air at the outlet port when rotated by hand. The drive coupling, carbon rotor and carbon vanes were intact.

The propeller remained attached to the engine crankshaft flange. The spinner displayed heavy crush damage only on one side of the spinner, and minimal damage on the other. One propeller blade was bent forward about 10-degrees approximately 18 inches inboard of the propeller tip and exhibited trailing edge gouging and chord-wise scuffing near the trailing edge of the blade. The other propeller blade was bent aft about 5 degrees at about 18 inches outboard of the hub.

SURVIVAL ASPECTS

Examination of the wreckage revealed that the tubular steel structure which surrounded the cabin had remained relatively intact and that cabin volume integrity had only been minimally reduced during the impact sequence. Examination of the occupant restraint system revealed that shoulder harnesses were not installed in any of the seat positions and the lap belts on the front left and right seats were anchored to the seat structure, and not the airplane structure. The pilot's lap belt did not display evidence of stretching, the latching mechanism had remained latched, and the belt attachment fittings had remained attached to the seat. The seat had been displaced from its mounting location, and there was evidence of the pilot having struck the front of the cabin area during the impact sequence.

No shoulder belts were required to be installed under the regulations that were in effect at the time of the airplane's manufacture. As of December 12, 1986, the FAA required that shoulder belts be installed for all seats in small airplanes manufactured since that date. There was no requirement that shoulder belts be retrofitted to airplanes made prior to that date but. Piper Aircraft issued Service Bulletin (SB) 980 on January 18, 1995, which required the installation of shoulder belts in any airplanes where they were not originally equipped. Piper considered compliance with the SB mandatory.

According to the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute's publication AM-400-90/2, seat belts alone only protect occupants in minor impacts; however, the use of shoulder belts was found to reduce major injuries by 88 percent and fatalities by 20 percent.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION

An autopsy was performed on the pilot at the Newberry County Memorial Hospital Morgue on behalf of the Edgefield County Coroner. The listed cause of death was blunt force injury of the head.

Toxicological testing of the pilot was conducted at the FAA Bioaeronautical Sciences Research Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The specimens from the pilot were negative for carbon monoxide, basic, acidic, and neutral drugs with the exception of:

- Ibuprofen which was detected in Urine, and was a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug with analgesic and antipyretic activity.

- Ranitidine which was detected in Blood and Urine, and was an over-the-counter (OTC) histamine H2-receptor antagonist used to decrease the production of gastric acid, treat ulcers, and a number of other stomach ailments.

- Salicylate which was detected in Urine, and was an aspirin metabolite, an OTC anti-inflammatory medication to treat aches and pains, an antipyretic to reduce fever, and also had an antiplatelet effect used to reduce the risk of myocardial infarction.

TESTS AND RESEARCH

Checklists

Review of the documentation found in the wreckage revealed that a checklist was onboard within reach of the pilot which listed both normal and emergency procedures.

Further review of the checklist revealed information in the pretakeoff checklist which required that the electric auxiliary fuel pumps be selected to the "On" position. The checklist also addressed engine failure in flight. It required that the pilot to "Maintain Control/Pitch/Airspeed" which directed that the airplane's speed be maintained at critical engine-out minimum controllable airspeed (Vmc) of 73 miles per hour, that the landing gear and the wing flaps be moved to the "Up" position and that the inoperative engine's propeller be selected to "Feather." It further required that the pilot accelerate to 95 mph, which was the best rate of climb speed single engine (Vyse) for the airplane.

At the time of the airplane's manufacture, the Civil Aviation Regulations only required that flight at Vyse to assure minimum sink rate. It did not guarantee that the airplane would be able to maintain altitude, particularly in the takeoff or landing configuration with one engine inoperative.

Propeller Feathering

The propellers on the airplane were constant speed, controllable, fully feathering units. These were controlled by the use of propeller pitch levers in the center of the control quadrant. Feathering of the propellers was accomplished by moving the controls fully aft through the high pitch detent into the feathering position. Feathering was expected to occur within 10 seconds. The propellers could be unfeathered by moving the propeller control forward, and pressing the engine starter buttons. Examination of both propellers revealed that neither was feathered.

Landing Gear System

The airplane was equipped with retractable tricycle configuration landing gear system, incorporating a steerable nose wheel. Examination of the system did not reveal evidence of any preimpact malfunction or failure, that the landing gear handle was in the neutral position, and all three landing gear were down.

The position of the landing gear was indicated by four lights located on the pedestal. When the green lights were illuminated, all three legs of the landing gear were down and locked; when the amber light was illuminated, the landing gear was up, and when no lights were illuminated, the landing gear was in an intermediate position. A red light in the landing gear control handle knob would flash when the landing gear was up and either one of the throttle levers were reduced below approximately 12 inches of manifold pressure. With the landing gear not in the down position, a landing gear warning horn would annunciate.

To guard against inadvertent retraction, of the landing gear on the ground, a mechanical latch, which must be operated before the landing gear control could be moved upward, was positioned just above the control lever.

A hydraulic system was used for the extension and retraction of the flaps and landing gear. Pressure was supplied to the control unit from an engine driven pump that was mounted on the left engine. Examination of the hydraulic system did not reveal any preimpact failures or malfunctions.

In the case of the landing gear, when the landing gear handle was moved from the center "Off" position and placed in either the retraction or extension (up or down) position, the hydraulic system would actuate the landing gear, and when it was either fully up or fully down, hydraulic pressure within the selector valve unit would force the landing gear control lever back to the "OFF" (neutral) position, which would then allow the hydraulic fluid to circulate freely between the pump and control unit. Landing gear retraction or extension would normally take between 10 and 12 seconds.

The airplane was also equipped with an emergency hydraulic pump which was integral with the selector valve unit and was used to obtain hydraulic pressure in the event of a hydraulic pump failure or failure of the left engine. To operate the emergency pump, the retract or extend the landing gear or flaps, the pilot would have to extend the handle to its full length by pulling aft and then position the landing gear handle to the position desired, then pump the handle 30 to 40 strokes to either raise or lower the landing gear.

The airplane was also equipped with an emergency hydraulic pump which was integral with the selector valve unit, and was used to obtain hydraulic pressure in the event of a hydraulic pump failure or failure of the left engine. Operation of the pump required the pilot to manually articulate handle between 30 and 40 strokes to either raise or lower the landing gear. In the event that a hydraulic system failure should occur due to a line breakage or selector valve malfunction, an independent system that could be pressurized with carbon dioxide from an onboard bottle was installed to enable the pilot to lower the landing gear.

Fuel System

The fuel system consisted of two 36 gallon main fuel cells (tanks) located outboard of the engines, and two 18 gallon auxiliary fuel cells located in the outboard sections of the wing. Fuel could be pumped by the engine driven fuel pumps from the tanks directly to the adjacent carburetors. The fuel valves could be left open at all times, and the crossfeed left in the off position.

Electric auxiliary fuel pumps were also installed in by-pass fuel lines between the tanks and the engine driven pumps. The electric pumps could be used to provide pressure in the event of a failure of the engine driven pumps. They would normally be turned on to check their operation before starting the engines, and left on during takeoff and landing, to preclude the possibility of fuel pressure loss in the event of an engine driven pump failure at critical times. Examination of the electric auxiliary fuel pumps switches revealed that they were in the "OFF" position.

If desired by the pilot, the fuel could also be pumped by the operating engine driven pump to the engine with the failed engine driven pump, by turning on the crossfeed. The good pump would then supply both engines from its tank. If this tank ran low on fuel, fuel could then be drawn from the opposite tank by turning on the electric pump on the failed engine driven pump side, leaving the crossfeed on, and turning the fuel valve on the empty tank off. Then the electric pump on the failed pump side would be supplying both engines from its tank.

Fuel could then be used from one tank or the other, by shutting off one main valve and turning on the crossfeed to balance fuel loads. For normal operation, it was recommended that fuel be pumped directly from the tanks to their respective engines with the crossfeed off.

The fuel valve controls and crossfeed control were located with the engine primer pumps in the fuel control panel between the two front seats. Examination of the crossfeed control revealed that it was in the "OFF" position. The left and right fuel valve controls were in the "ON MAIN 36 GAL" (main tanks) positions, and the spring-loaded locks, which prevented unwanted movement, were engaged. Examination of the fuel tanks' fuel shutoff valves revealed that the position of the valves did not agree with the fuel valve controls' positions, as the main fuel tanks' shutoff valves were closed, and the auxiliary fuel tanks' shutoff valves were open.

Examination of the fuel valve control cable assemblies which actuated the main fuel shutoff valve, and the auxiliary fuel shutoff valve, revealed that right fuel valve control cable assembly was of a different type than the left fuel valve control cable assembly, and appeared to be newer.

Further examination of the fuel valve control cable assemblies also revealed, that the cables were each attached to their respective fuel valve controls on the fuel control panel, and were connected to their respective fuel control cable support arms which were also used through the use of switch assemblies mounted above the support arms, to communicate to the fuel gauges which tank was selected, so the gauge could indicate the fuel quantity in the selected tank. It was discovered however, that neither the left or right cable assemblies were connected to their respective auxiliary fuel valve arm assembly which controlled both the main fuel shutoff valve, and through a turnbuckle and control arm, the auxiliary fuel shutoff valve. This was despite the fact that the securing hardware which consisted of two AN 393-15 pins secured by two AN 380-2-2 cotter pins, were still in place and were undamaged.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

A few weeks before the accident the pilot had flown the airplane to Pennsylvania to visit a relative. Upon his return he had contacted an airframe and powerplant mechanic that had previously performed an annual inspection on the airplane, and advised him that when he had switched tanks while flying the airplane home, the left engine "stumbled."

The mechanic advised the pilot that a cable might have gotten stuck, that he could check it for him, and that it probably needed lubrication. The pilot then told him that "he might try to lubricate it." The mechanic then advised him once again, to call him if he wanted to look at it but, the pilot advised him that "he would take the mid-belly pan off of the left side and take a look at it."

The pilot never called him back.

According to another airframe and powerplant mechanic the pilot had called him about 7 to 14 days prior to the accident about having a problem with the left fuel valve control. The pilot advised him that the fuel valve control was stiff or binding and that "he had gained access to the selector" and noted flexing in the cable upon tank selection. He asked what would cause this, and were there any adjustments that could be made to the linkage to ease the binding. The mechanic advised the pilot that there could be a number of reasons for the binding including a clogged, corroded, or dirty fuel valve, internal corrosion, friction in the cable, or the cable coming loose somewhere in the airframe where it was attached along its routing between the valve and the fuel valve control, thus causing the cable to flex and bind rather than operate normally. He strongly urged the pilot to get together with a knowledgeable mechanic with proper tools and documentation and have the problem thoroughly troubleshot and solved.

NTSB Identification: ERA14FA049
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Monday, November 25, 2013 in Graniteville, SC
Aircraft: PIPER PA-23-160, registration: N4016P
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 25, 2013, about 1804 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-23-160, N4016P, was substantially damaged when it impacted trees, after a loss of engine power, at Twin Lakes Airport (S17), Graniteville, South Carolina. The airline transport pilot was fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.

According to a witness who was in a hangar with a friend, it sounded to them like the twin engine airplane departed from runway 6. They then heard "chatter" on the radio but could not understand what the pilot was saying. About 10 seconds later the airplane passed behind the hangar they were in and it sounded like it was low to the ground and possibly running on one engine. Moments later they heard the airplane impact trees. The witness stated that he believed that the pilot may have been attempting to land on Rachel Avenue which was behind the hangar he was in, and which paralleled the runway, and was used as a taxiway at the fly-in residential community.

Examination of the accident site and wreckage revealed that the airplane had come to rest in a forested area just off of Rachel Avenue. There was no evidence of any preimpact malfunction or failure of either engine that should have precluded normal engine operation. Further examination revealed however, that the left engine did not exhibit any indication that it was producing power on impact.

Examination of the fuel selectors revealed that both the left and right selectors were in the main tank positions and the spring loaded locks which prevented unwanted movement were engaged. Examination of the main fuel tanks fuel shutoff valves revealed however, that they were closed, and the auxiliary fuel tanks shutoff valves were open.

Examination of the cable assemblies which actuated the fuel shutoff valves revealed that right cable assembly was of a different type than the left cable assembly and appeared to be newer. Further examination of the cable assemblies also revealed that neither the left or right cable assemblies were connected to the push-pull rods which controlled the main and auxiliary fuel tank's fuel shutoff valves. Additionally, none of the hardware required to secure the cable assemblies to the push pull rods was present.

The airplane had recently been purchased by the pilot, and a few weeks before the accident he had flown it to Pennsylvania to visit a relative. Upon his return he had contacted an airframe and powerplant mechanic and advised him that he was having difficulties with the fuel selectors being stiff and hard to move. According to the mechanic, he advised the pilot that the fuel selector and fuel shutoff valve actuating assemblies could be out of adjustment and that he needed to have a mechanic examine the system to make sure that it was working properly and lubricate the linkages in the fuel selector and fuel shutoff valve actuating assemblies. The pilot however never called him back prior to the accident flight.

The airplane was retained by the NTSB for further examination.


Richard Showalter 

 GRANITEVILLE, SC – Mr. Richard Showalter, 56, beloved husband of thirty-seven years to Susan Showalter, died Monday, November 25th, 2013, doing what he loved, flying his Piper Apache. Born in Baltimore, MD, a son of Lola Showalter, Everett, PA and the late David Albert Showalter, he had been a resident of Westminster, MD for many years. He had been a resident of Culpeper, VA, prior to coming to Graniteville, SC, in 2009. His career as an Air Traffic Controller began in the United States Navy. Following his honorable discharge from the Navy, he went to work in the same capacity with the FAA. Richard had a passion for flying and enjoyed hunting and fishing. He and Susan enjoyed taking their four-legged child “Ziggy” for walks. In addition to his wife and parents, family members include his daughter, Mary Elizabeth and her husband, Imran Chatriwala, and their children, Dorothy Alice and Elyas Imran, all of Stuttgart, Germany; siblings, Virginia Zile, Westminster, MD, Jane Black, and Tammie Dicken, both of Everett, PA and David Showalter, DeBary, Fl. In accordance with his wishes, Richard will be cremated and the family will hold a private memorial service. It has been requested that memorials be made to the: SPCA Albrecht Center for Animal Welfare, 199 Willow Run Road, Aiken, SC 29801. Hatcher Funeral Home & Cremation Service, Langley, SC.


Richard Showalter, who died in a Piper PA-23 Apache crash on Monday, had recently purchased the plane that crashed. 



Richard Showalter, 56, died of blunt force trauma after his plane crashed on Monday evening in Edgefield County.



Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the plane crash that killed an experienced Graniteville pilot on Monday, but an Aiken pilot said Richard Showalter had recently purchased the twin-engine plane that crashed.

Showalter, 56, was the only person aboard the Piper PA-23 when it crashed into some trees near the Twin Lakes Airport just after 6 p.m. on Monday. He died of blunt force trauma to the body and head, according to the Edgefield County Coroner's Office.
 

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash and is expected to release a preliminary report next week; however, it will take longer to determine the cause, and the board's final report could take up to a year.

Showalter had more than 30 years experience in aviation, including as an air traffic controller and a pilot. Don Barnes, chief pilot for Aiken Air Service, said he was considering hiring Showalter to fly for the company. He last spoke with Showalter on Nov. 20.

“He told me he got this airplane and was going to do multiengine instruction,” said Barnes, who got his own multiengine rating in a PA-23 like the one Showalter was flying. “It's got some design problems that make it one of the planes I'm very hesitant to fly anymore. It's very underpowered, and that's a bad thing in airplanes.”

The two had spoken on the phone for about a year but never met face-to-face.

According to Barnes, the plane's hydraulic landing gear is on the left engine and operates in a way that if it is not retracted soon enough after takeoff, it could cause the left engine to lose power. The older models had much less horsepower than the newer models.

Showalter had flown mostly turbine-powered twin-engine planes at Daniel Field in Augusta, Barnes said. If a turbine-powered plane loses an engine, it will keep flying; but if an older piston plane, like the PA-23, loses power, the plane can't fly with just the right engine.

Barnes said he'd submitted the paperwork for Showalter to fly with their company and was awaiting approval when they spoke last week.

“I didn't make any comments at the time,” he said of Showalter's news about purchasing the plane. “He didn't ask, I didn't offer any comments. If he would have asked, I would have advised him against it.”

On the Facebook page for his business, Aviation Consulting Expert Services Inc., Showalter wrote that he offered a number of services, including multiengine time building, flight instruction, pilot services and crew resource management training. His last posting was on Nov. 11 – a photo taken above the clouds with the caption, “Somewhere over West Virginia on the flight back from visiting Mom.”

Read more: Investigation into plane crash continues | Aiken Standard

 


Daylight video of plane crash scene 




























The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the small plane crash that killed an experienced Graniteville pilot in Edgefield County on Monday night.

Richard Showalter, 56, died of blunt force trauma to the body and head, according to the Edgefield County Coroner’s Office. Showalter was the lone person aboard the small plane that crashed in the Twin Lakes area at about 6 p.m. on Monday night. Twin Lakes Airport straddles the Aiken County/Edgefield County line.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing the white, twin-engine plane in some trees off Rachel Avenue, its nose in the ground and the tail up in the trees.

The cause of the crash has not been determined. An investigator from the National Transportation Safety Board arrived on the scene Tuesday and will be there for at least a couple of days, according to spokesman Keith Holloway.

“He’s on the scene, gathering factual information, inspecting the aircraft and so forth,” Holloway said.

The board will have a preliminary report on the crash available on its website sometime next week. The full report could take up to a year to put together.

“The preliminary report still does not determine the cause, but there will be some additional factual information,” Holloway said.

A message left with the Edgefield County Sheriff’s Office was not returned.

According to his LinkedIn page, Showalter was a contract pilot with Aiken Air Service. He’d previously piloted for Augusta Aviation and before that worked in a number of air traffic control positions for the Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Navy.

http://www.aikenstandard.com

Trenton, SC - After a plane went down Monday night at the Twin Lakes Air Park, there were many questions to what happened.   Edgefield Chief Deputy Coroner's Office identified the victim as 56-year old Richard Showalter of Graniteville.

After talking to family and friends, they said Showalter was a very experienced pilot. He spent 22-years as an air traffic controller, and was a certified flight instructor.

Alan Swires was sitting at inside a nearby hanger last night when he heard a loud noise outside on the tarmac.

"We heard a low flying plane that was in the back part of the hangar, and the runways in the front part of the hangar… and right after we heard the engine noise, we heard the crash," said Swires.

As soon as he heard the plane go down, Swires said he immediately ran out to the back of the field off Rachel Avenue.

He and his friend checked the man for a pulse, but there was nothing.

"We saw that there was not any way he could of made it," said Swires.

The National Transportation Safety Board arrived to the scene this Tuesday morning to start its investigation on the remains of the Piper PA 23—160.

NTSB Investigator Todd Gunther said they don't know much as of now, but are taking reports from witnesses around the area.

"Witness statements right now what we understand was that there was a noise, either a sputtering noise or what they sensed as a loss of power," said Gunther.

For now the investigation continues into what happened when the twin-engine plane came down.

"Some of the things that we will be looking at as part of the investigation are the weather conditions that occurred at the time of the accident, the physiology of the pilot, and the systems on the airplane," said Gunther.

The NTSB will have results on their investigation of the crash within 5 to 7 days.

Story and Video:  http://www.wjbf.com

BETTIS ACADEMY – One person is dead following a twin engine plane crash in a wooded area off Rachel Avenue parallel to the Twin Lakes airstrip on the Aiken and Edgefield County line around 6 pm. Cpl. Robbie Harter said the plane went down "nose first into the trees", but could not elaborate on the scene. The identity of the pilot has been released. 

 "We have one fatality," Harter said adding the scene was being secured until investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) could arrive to take over the investigation. "At that time all questions will be referred to them," Harter said.

Deputy Coroner David Burnett said the pilot was Richard Showalter, 56, from Graniteville. "We will have an autopsy tomorrow (Tuesday) to determine the cause of death," Burnett said.


The plane was a 1958 Piper PA23-160 Apache (bottom) and was for sale at the time of the crash. Engine trouble was said to have possibly played a roll in the crash. There are varying reports, most saying the pilot was taking off just before the crash. According to information provided, witnesses heard the takeoff and then the engines "spitting and sputtering" before the plane went down. 

 Media was kept far away from the scene at a location at the intersection of Rachel Avenue and Michelle Avenue.

TRENTON — A small airplane crashed on Monday night near Twin Lakes Airport, killing one man, who was its pilot. No other people were on board.

“I saw the airplane, and I saw the police cars and the ambulances,” said Eileen Hutson, who lives on Mooney Court near the site of the accident. “It was a white, twin-engine plane. It landed to the right of Rachel Avenue at the beginning of the woods. It was nose down in the ground, and the back of the tail was up against the trees. There was some debris lying to the left of the plane.”

Twin Lakes Airport straddles the Aiken County/Edgefield County line.

“I talked to a guy who went over to the plane before anybody else got there, and he said that he had checked the pilot's pulse; he told me that the pilot was dead,” said Hutson, who took the photographs of the aircraft that appear in today's edition of the Aiken Standard.

According to Hutson, the plane went down around 6:15 p.m. She didn't hear anything, but she knew that something unusual had happened because she got a phone call from her daughter, Terri Cheek, saying that police wouldn't let her into the subdivision where Hutson's house is located. Then, Hutson said, someone phoned her husband with the news that a plane had crashed nearby.

“I drove down there, and when I got there, there was a sea of police cars,” she said. “They already had tape up (to prevent public access to the crash scene).”

The pilot's name had not been released as of press time.

Representatives of the Edgefield County Sheriff's Office provided limited information to the Aiken Standard during the hours immediately following the crash.

Dede Biles is a general assignment reporter for the Aiken Standard and has been with the newspaper since January 2013. A native of Concord, N.C., she graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Trenton, SC -   One person is dead after a plane crash near Rachel Avenue in Trenton, South Carolina. Investigators don't know what caused the plane crash, but they say it happened just after 6pm.

"We have a single fatality from what appears to be a private plane that has crashed," Emergency Management Director Mike Casey said.

Although details are limited, investigators say a twin-engine plane crashed in the woods near the Twin Lakes Air Park in Edgefield County.

Investigators say they have identified the pilot, but will not release his name at this time.

"The next of kin has not been notified at this time so we are withholding the name because of that. The coroner's office will be sending the remains for an autopsy," Casey said.

Federal authorities are on their way to investigate the crash.

"The scene will be secure overnight until they get here, if they choose to wait until tomorrow, that's their decision, but we have been in touch with them," Casey said.

Right now, investigators don't know what caused the crash, but are interviewing people who live in the area to find out if they saw anything.

"Words to the effect from at least one person that saw the plane, it appeared that it had some type of engine trouble. We're going to research that some more, and the NTSB, once they examine the plane, they will be able to tell us more about that, but it appears that there was some type of problem while he was in the air rather than on take-off or landing," Casey said.

The National Transportation Safety Board will be conducting the investigation.


 http://www.wjbf.com


EDGEFIELD COUNTY, S.C. -  The pilot of a small plane is dead after a crash at the Twin Lakes Airport in Trenton, South Carolina.

Just after 6 PM Monday, authorities say a small twin engine private aircraft went down in the woods just after takeoff.

Authorities say the pilot on board, who has yet to be identified, died in the crash.

Crews will continue to examine the wreckage to determine the cause of the crash.

"The National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration have been notified and they will be coming in shortly. The scene will be secured overnight if they choose to wait until tomorrow. That's their decision, but we have been in touch with them," said Mike Casey, Edgefield Co. EMA Director.

NBC 26 has confirmed the pilot of a private aircraft is dead after a crash in Edgefield County.

It happened near Bettis Academy Road and Highway 25, near the Twin Lakes Air Executive Park, according to a spokesperson with the Graniteville-Vaucluse-Warrenville Volunteer Fire Department.

The Edgefield County EMA Director tells NBC 26 the plane was a twin engine private plane with only one passenger on board.

The name of the victim has not yet been released.

NTSB will continue to secure the scene until officials arrive.

Edgefield County, SC   WJBF News Channel 6 is covering breaking news out of Edgefield County.  We are told the plane went down near Highway 37 (Bettis Academy Road), near Highway 25. That is near the Twin Lakes Air Executive Park, near Rachel Avenue, according to officials.  Details are limited, at this time.  

According to the Edgefield County EMA Director, it was a twin engine private plane that crashed, and the only person on the plane was the pilot who was killed in the crash. The next of kin has not been notified so the name of the victim has not been released.   

http://www.wjbf.com

EDGEFIELD COUNTY, S.C. (WRDW) -- News 12 has learned that the pilot of the one-person, twin engine plane that crashed near the Twin Lakes Airport is dead. 

Edgefield County coroner Thurmond Burnett identifies the pilot as 56-year-old Richard Showalter from Graniteville. 

The National Transportation Safety Board as well as the FAA have been notified and will be investigating the crash.

Early indications by witness accounts seem to point to some type of engine failure while in flight. Edgefield County EMA says that they are currently working with that as a possibility for the crash. The investigation by the NTSB will be determining the official cause.

The coroner says an autopsy is set for later today in Newberry, S.C.

http://www.wrdw.com