Shaun Jackson, a professor in U-M's School of Art and Design, was killed last January in an amphibious plane that was on its first flight after being grounded with engine trouble months earlier, according to an NTSB investigative report.
A year after a Florida plane crash killed a University of Michigan professor and the aircraft’s pilot, the crash’s cause remains unclear, according to an updated report from the National Transportation Safety Board.
The NTSB’s probable cause report, which was released last week, states the investigation found nothing to indicate a problem with the plane during the ill-fated flight, or any issues stemming from an emergency landing four months earlier.
Shaun Jackson, a professor in U-M’s School of Art and Design, was in Florida to examine the amphibious airplane, which he apparently was considering buying. The Jan. 12, 2013, crash near the airport in Sarasota killed Jackson, 63, and pilot William Ardoyno, 70, of Hayward, Wis.
“Witnesses reported that the airplane appeared to be climbing slowly after takeoff, then stopped climbing and appeared to be on the verge of a stall,” the report says. “One witness heard a backfire or popping noise before the accident.”
The airplane collided with trees and fell to the ground, the report says.
It’s not clear from the NTSB reports whether Jackson knew about a previous case of engine trouble that forced the amphibious plane down near Sebastian Inlet, Fla., in September 2012.
Afterward, a fuel injector line was replaced and propeller mechanisms were overhauled, but the plane had not been flown again before the crash, the report says.
“Smooth cuts in tree limbs indicated that the engine was operating at the time of impact,” said the report. “The reason for the pilot’s inability to establish a normal climb rate could not be determined.”
NTSB crash investigations can take more than a year to conclude. A previous fact-finding report in the crash was issued Nov. 19.
From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com
http://registry.faa.gov/N829GS
NTSB Identification: ERA13FA109
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, January 12, 2013 in Sarasota, FL
Probable Cause Approval Date: 01/13/2014
Aircraft: BENTON FRED D SEAWIND 3000, registration: N829GS
Injuries: 2 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.
The purpose of the flight was to demonstrate the amphibious airplane for a potential buyer. A witness stated that the pilot had difficulty starting the engine before the accident flight. Witnesses reported that the airplane appeared to be climbing slowly after takeoff, then stopped climbing and appeared to be on the verge of a stall. One witness heard a backfire or popping noise before the accident. The airplane collided with trees and then the ground, and a postcrash fire consumed most of the wreckage.
The investigation revealed that, about 4 months before the accident flight, the accident pilot performed a forced landing on water due to a loss of engine power, after which maintenance personnel found and repaired a broken fuel injector line. During that maintenance, the airplane’s propeller was removed, overhauled, and replaced. The airplane had not been flown in the interim. However, maintenance personnel reported that the pilot performed high speed taxi tests before the accident flight and told them that the engine and propeller were performing satisfactorily. Further, postaccident examination of the airframe, engine, and propeller did not reveal evidence of a preexisting malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operation. Smooth cuts in tree limbs indicated that the engine was operating at the time of impact. The reason for the pilot's inability to establish a normal climb rate could not be determined.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The pilot's inability to establish a normal climb rate after takeoff for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
http://www.ntsb.gov
Images of the Seawind 3000 (N829GS) that was forced to make an emergency landing at Sebastian Inlet on September 15, 2012: http://www.tcpalm.com
Photo by Sam Wolfe
Flight instructor Jack Ardoyno (left), of Hayward, WI, and Leonard Fleming, of Port Orchard, WA, laugh with firefighters David Dangerfield (not pictured) and Dustin Hawkins (center) after Fleming’s plane had to be beached at Sebastian Inlet State Park on September 15, 2012. The pair were flying the aircraft near the inlet when it experienced a loss of engine power and had to make an emergency landing in the Indian River. No one was injured in the landing.
Flight instructor Jack Ardoyno (left), of Hayward, WI, and Leonard Fleming, of Port Orchard, WA, laugh with firefighters David Dangerfield (not pictured) and Dustin Hawkins (center) after Fleming’s plane had to be beached at Sebastian Inlet State Park on September 15, 2012. The pair were flying the aircraft near the inlet when it experienced a loss of engine power and had to make an emergency landing in the Indian River. No one was injured in the landing.
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