Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, United Airlines, N27958: Accident occurred November 07, 2015 in Beaumont, Texas

UNITED AIRLINES INC: http://registry.faa.gov/N27958 

NTSB Identification: DCA16CA021
Scheduled 14 CFR Part 121: Air Carrier operation of UNITED AIR LINES INC
Accident occurred Saturday, November 07, 2015 in Beaumont, TX
Probable Cause Approval Date: 08/24/2016
Aircraft: BOEING 787, registration: N27958
Injuries: 1 Serious, 220 Uninjured.

NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.

According to crew statements, the flight encountered light turbulence while deviating around areas of weather depicted on the onboard weather radar during descent from FL350 to 12,000 feet. Air Traffic Control (ATC) had also advised them of areas of precipitation shown on ATC radar. The seatbelt sign was turned on and the flight crew advised the cabin crew to complete service and be seated for arrival.

The flight was returning on course after it appeared they were clear of significant weather when they encountered an area of moderate turbulence and briefly encountered what the crew characterized as severe turbulence. A flight attendant (FA) in the aft galley was lifted into the air and fell back down to the floor injuring her ankle. The flight crew was notified of the injury and they requested paramedics meet the airplane upon arrival. 

The FA was transported to the hospital where she was diagnosed with a fractured ankle.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
An inadvertent encounter with convective turbulence resulting in serious injury to a flight attendant.

Beechcraft B23 Musketeer, N4002T: Incident occurred September 16, 2016 at Triple W Airport (5W5), Fuquay-Varina, Wake County, North Carolina

http://registry.faa.gov/N4002T




FUQUAY-VARINA (WTVD) -- A pilot and his wife were fortunate to walk away unscathed after their airplane overshot the runway Friday evening at the Triple W Airpark in Fuquay-Varina.


The small aircraft was attempting to land when the incident happened.

Pilot Jeffrey Thomas and his wife were coming in from Statesville to visit their son for the weekend.

Thomas was trying to land his single-engine plane, but because of poor visibility, the plane overshot the runway and veered into the woods.

Thomas and his wife both walked away without injury.

Story and video:   http://abc11.com

Cessna 182, N5354B: Incident occurred September 14, 2016 in Glendive, Dawson County, Montana

BLACKWOLFDEN AVIATION LLC:   http://registry.faa.gov/N5354B

FAA Flight Standards District Office: FAA Helena FSDO-05

AIRCRAFT ON A FORCED LANDING ON A HIGHWAY, STRUCK A POWERLINE, NEAR GLENDIVE, MONTANA.

Date: 14-SEP-16
Time: 18:17:00Z
Regis#: N5354B
Aircraft Make: CESSNA
Aircraft Model: 182
Event Type: Incident
Highest Injury: None
Damage: Minor
Flight Phase: LANDING (LDG)
City: GLENDIVE
State: Montana

Palos pilot offers appreciation to those who helped after floatplane went adrift

A man who was on a hike through Starved Rock State Park on Wednesday and didn't realize the floatplane he had piloted to get there was adrift in the Illinois River offered appreciation and apologies to those who responded during the incident.

"I felt really badly about the whole situation and apologized," Brett Valiquet, 68, of Palos Hills said Thursday. "I said I appreciated everything they had done."

Valiquet on Wednesday flew the ultralight floatplane from Cushing Field in Newark, Ill., in order to hike the park, which is located near Utica, about 100 miles west of Chicago.

"I had pulled the plane completely up on the beach," he said.

But a nearby dam opened up and raised the water level, which pulled the aircraft back into the water, he said.

The plane drifted in the river before it lodged along the shoreline downstream, he said. Someone saw it and called police, which led to an investigation of how the plane got there and who might have been onboard.

Later, as Valiquet headed back to his plane after his four-hour walk, he met an officer with the Illinois Conservation Police.

"He said, 'Well, you've caused quite a stir,''' Valiquet said. "They were extremely nice to me and I was very grateful that they found the plane."

The authorities thought he had been hiking, but did not rule out the possibility that he could have fallen into the river, according to Illinois Conservation Police Sgt. Phil Wire.

Because that type of aircraft does not require registration, authorities at first did not know who the pilot was. A fisherman saw Valiquet dock the boat and go into the Starved Rock Lodge for lunch. Because the safety glasses and headset were neatly sitting on the seat, and the engine was working properly, police did not suspect foul play, Wire said.

The ultraflight floatplane was built from a kit, and Valiquet said he added pontoons to it. It also has retractable wheels, making it amphibious, he said.

"I've flown to Starved Rock many times and I enjoy hiking there," he said, adding he never had any problems.

After thanking the emergency crews, the first thing Valiquet did was call his wife, he said.

"I didn't want her to hear it though the news," he said. "She heard it from me first."

He said the next time he flies to Starved Rock, he is going to carry a long rope to be sure to tie the plane to a tree, not just leave it on the beach, he said.

Source:  http://www.chicagotribune.com

An officer checks an ultralight plane Wednesday afternoon on the north shore of the Illinois River near Starved Rock State Park.



What was thought at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday to be a plane crash and river rescue became recovery of an undamaged and floating ultralight plane in the Illinois River and a man touring Starved Rock State Park.

At 4:45 p.m. authorities still were looking for the man and were waiting for him to return to the aircraft, tied back up where it was originally spotted at the Starved Rock State Park canoe rental, said Sgt. Phil Wire of Illinois Conservation Police.

The man is described as in his 50s with light hair and wearing a tan shirt and light pants, Wire said.

“He talked to a waitress at Starved Rock Lodge and talked about how he got there today,” Wire said. The man paid for a meal using a gift card without a name, he said.

The one-seat open cockpit plane, fitted with pontoons instead of landing wheels, is built of fabric with a metal frame. When the initial call went out about a crashed plane, dozens of rescuers converged on the river near the park and found the plane against the north shore, downstream of Plum Island and the canoe and boat launch.

Authorities believed the pilot beached the plane somewhere near the canoe launch, entered the park, and the plane later drifted away.

Officers tied the plane to a boat and towed it back to the park’s canoe launch as they mounted a river search for the pilot. By 2:10 p.m. searchers were advised by radio that the pilot had been seen at the canoe launch, in the park and up at the lodge, authorities said.

Source:  http://newstrib.com

Old plane at Point Mugu transported to new home at Camarillo Airport (KCMA)



A small, dilapidated plane once used to train Navy pilots during the Vietnam War era was moved by flatbed truck Wednesday from Naval Base Point Mugu to the Camarillo Airport, where it will get a new lease on life as a teaching tool for high school students.

The result for all involved was "Mission Accomplished."

The long-dormant T-34B, which gathered moss and dust while sitting at the naval base since 2001, will be used to teach high school students about aviation and auto body repair. The transfer of the old-school, two-seater was made by the Ventura County Office of Education, the Ventura County Sheriff's Office and the Navy base working together.

Students in the office of education's career center at the airport will learn the history of the plane — the model was once used by the likes of war hero and U.S. Sen. John McCain and countless astronauts — and will restore the exterior from top to bottom.


Larry Hanson, a retired senior deputy, helps transfer a T-34B plane from Naval Base Ventura County Point Mugu to the Camarillo Airport on Wednesday. At left is Dan Seibert, a service technician with the Ventura County Sheriff's Office of Emergency Services.


"I am amazed," said Diallo Wallace, an aerospace engineer at the base and a teacher in the career center's aviation and engineering programs, as the plane was hoisted by forklift onto a sheriff's office flatbed truck for the 8-mile ride to the airport. "I can't believe it."

It traveled uneventfully up Las Posas Road, past agricultural fields, on its slow-speed drive to the county airport. Its wings had to be removed for ease of transport, inadvertently creating another learning opportunity for the high school students, who will have to reattach them as part of the refurbishment project.

The T-34B was used by the Navy beginning in 1955 as the introductory aircraft for all student naval aviators and was utilized for two decades by multiple services.

After the plane at Point Mugu outlived its usefulness as a trainer, replaced by newer, more technologically advanced models, it remained at the base under the auspices of the now-defunct Point Mugu Navy Flying Club, whose members flew it for recreation for years.



But it was grounded permanently in 2002 after an accident, in which the pilot landed the plane without engaging its landing gear. No one was injured, but the plane was never used again and the club could no longer afford its upkeep, said Art Phillips, the last president of the flying club and its unofficial historian.

He said that according to his research, the pilot simply forgot to engage the landing gear.

So the plane sat on the base, exposed to the elements, for years. Wallace said he would see it each day as he drove to work and wondered if it might serve a purpose for the students he began teaching last year at the career education center. The craft had been destined for disposal by the Navy.

Although Wallace and others had to navigate lots of red tape to make Wednesday's move a reality, he said students in the aviation and auto body programs will ultimately benefit from the effort.




"Kids will understand the components of the aircraft, its utilization and some of its history," Wallace said. "It's part of history and naval aviation."

In the aerospace program at the career education center, students learn about flight physics, airspace and how different types of aircraft operate, Wallace said. Volunteers from the U.S. NAVAIR Reserve Program Flight Test Augmentation Unit, led by Cmdrs. Conrad Dungca and Shane Eisenbraun, will help teach the students, as well.


Diallo Wallace, aviation instructor at Ventura County Office of Education, watches a crane unload a 2,800-pound T-34B plane at Camarillo Airport on Wednesday.


Tiffany Morse, executive director of career education for the county office of education, said she is thrilled to have the Navy's hand-me-down on her campus and said the project will be part of a larger effort to expand and upgrade the aviation program, taking it to the next level in offerings.

"This is a project that will help our auto body and auto paint students, who will get to refurbish a plane, which is something they don't get to do very often," Morse said. "And we'll use it in the aviation program, where the students can go out and look at the mechanics of the plane and have a real hands-on experience."

There were 2,000 students enrolled in county office of education programs last year, including 45 in aviation, she said. She expects the number of aviation students to expand to 200 this year as the program grows and improves.

Story and photo gallery:  http://www.vcstar.com

6 military jets make unexpected landing in New Hampshire: Low-flying jets diverted after refueling issue, official says



PORTSMOUTH, N.H. —Many New Hampshire residents were alarmed early Wednesday morning as military jets were heard flying low to the ground.

Six F-16 fighter jets that had departed from South Carolina's Shaw Air Force Base zipped through the skies above many cities and towns around 3 a.m.

"I jumped up, and I went to the window, and I could hear multiple jets," said Lance Richardson, of Exeter. "It wasn't just one that went by."

The jets were headed to their home base of Aviano Air Base in Italy when their refueling tanker encountered mechanical issues, according to Lt. Col. Greg Heilshorn, of the New Hampshire National Guard.

As a result, the jets were unable to refuel over the ocean. They were diverted to Pease Air National Guard Base in Portsmouth.

Many residents in the area said they were confused by the noise.

"There was a chance of severe showers early in the morning," said Vicki Connors, of Nottingham. "It was 2 or 3, I was sound asleep and heard this rumble. Oh my God -- a tornado!"

"I panicked," said CarrieJaye Scott, of Nottingham. "I thought something was going on. I ran into the kids' room and put my arms up as if to brace them in case something was happening, and eventually the sound stopped."

Scott said that her house shook to the foundation. When she learned why, she took her sons to Pease to get a glimpse of the jets.

"I definitely feel better," she said. "Knowing and seeing that they're here makes me feel a little bit better."

The jets will remain in New Hampshire until Friday before continuing their mission, Heilshorn said.

Story and video:  http://www.wmur.com

Plane Painters Needed At Brookley Aeroplex



More jobs are being offered in the aerospace industry at Brookley Aeroplex. Maas Aviation is looking for workers.

Maas paints the planes for Airbus. Today a freshly-painted  A321 for Spirit Airlines was rolled out.

Maas is currently building another facility at Brookley that will handle work for companies other than Airbus. They’ll need about 50 new workers. One five-week training program begins next week, and another will begin in October. It’s a project in conjunction with Mobile Works and Bishop State Community College. No specific qualifications are necessary.

“It could be a high school graduate, it could be retired military person, it could be somebody who worked a couple of years in the industry,” said Dominick Schilleci, Quality Manager at Maas. “It could be someone who is forty years old with a good attitude and a good work ethic.”

This is an unpaid training program. After five weeks, top performers will be offered full time employment starting at about 12 dollars an hour. Maas’ CEO Tim MacDougald says there is plenty of room for promotion.

“We offer progression,” MacDougald said. “So anyone who starts off they have the ability to earn more if they show their skill set. And we are a growing business and with that comes opportunity.”

For more information, contact Bishop State, Mobile Works, or send your resume to usjobs@maasaviation.com.

Story and video:   http://wkrg.com

Chinese Airlines Wave Wads of Cash to Lure Foreign Pilots



Chinese airlines need to hire almost 100 pilots a week for the next 20 years to meet skyrocketing travel demand. Facing a shortage of candidates at home, carriers are dangling lucrative pay packages at foreigners with cockpit experience.

Giacomo Palombo, a former United Airlines pilot, said he’s being bombarded every week with offers to fly Airbus A320s in China. Regional carrier Qingdao Airlines promises as much as $318,000 a year. Sichuan Airlines, which flies to Canada and Australia, is pitching $302,000. Both airlines say they’ll also cover his income tax bill in China.

“When the time to go back to flying comes, I’ll definitely have the Chinese airlines on my radar,” said Palombo, 32, now an Atlanta-based consultant for McKinsey & Co. “The financials are attractive.”

Air traffic over China is set to almost quadruple in the next two decades, making it the world’s busiest market, according to Airbus Group SE. Startup carriers barely known abroad are paying about 50 percent more than what some senior captains earn at Delta Air Lines, and they’re giving recruiters from the U.S. to New Zealand free rein to fill their captains’ chairs.

With some offers reaching $26,000 a month in net pay, pilots from emerging markets including Brazil and Russia can quadruple their salaries in China, said Dave Ross, Las Vegas-based president of Wasinc International. Wasinc is recruiting for more than a dozen mainland carriers, including Chengdu Airlines, Qingdao Airlines and Ruili Airlines.

‘Almost Unlimited’

“When we ask an airline, ‘How many pilots do you need?,’ they say, ‘Oh, we can take as many as you bring,”’ Ross said. “It’s almost unlimited.”

Spokesmen for Qingdao and Sichuan declined to comment. A Chengdu Airlines spokesman didn’t reply to faxed questions sent at his request.

Recruits preferring to live outside China earn a bit less but are offered free flights home to visit family members. Also on the negotiating table: signing bonuses, overtime pay and contract-completion payouts. Earlier this year, Ross saw the monthly paycheck of a pilot he placed at Beijing Capital Airlines: $80,000.

“I looked at that and thought, ‘Man, I’m in the wrong line of business,’" Ross said from Vienna, where he was interviewing candidates for Chengdu Airlines. “They can live like a king.”

By comparison, the average annual salary for senior pilots at major U.S. airlines such as Delta is $209,000, according to KitDarby.com Aviation Consulting. Some U.S. regional airlines pay $25,000 or less, according to the Air Line Pilots Association, representing more than 52,000 pilots in the U.S. and Canada.

Fleet Triples

Aviation is booming in China, where the number of airlines has increased 28 percent to 55 in the past five years. The fleet has more than tripled in a decade to 2,650, according to the Civil Aviation Industry Statistics Report.

The growing ranks of low-cost airlines favor single-aisle jets such as the A320, which can seat about 180 people. With passenger numbers in China increasing 11 percent last year, carriers are scheduling more flights to handle demand. And that requires more captains.

Offering a fat paycheck is the only option for the newest carriers because they have minimal brand recognition and a limited performance record, said Liz Loveridge, who’s responsible for China recruitment at Rishworth Aviation in Auckland. Chinese airlines are paying as much as five times more than some Asia rivals for new hires, she said.

“They can’t attract people through any other means,” Loveridge said. “They think money’s the only answer.’’

Bureaucratic Headache

The lucrative packages go some way toward compensating recruits for one of their biggest headaches -- government bureaucracy. It might take two years for a pilot to start work in China after applying for a job, she said.

“It’s the documentation, the work permits, the immigration, the medicals,” she said. “They say they want pilots, but there aren’t the resources.’’

About 30,000 pilots fly for Air China, China Eastern Airlines and dozens of competitors, while about 2,200 foreign pilots have transport licenses, according to the government’s Annual Report of Chinese Pilot Development. 
South Korea, the U.S. and Mexico contribute the most expatriates, and there’s also a lone Zimbabwean aviator.

Foreigners willing to captain a Boeing 737 for Urumqi Airlines can earn $21,333 a month, according to recruiter VOR Holdings. They would be based in Urumqi, a western outpost bracketed by Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

VOR also advertises similar roles at Xiamen Airlines, with pay potentially topping $332,000.

Uncomfortable China

“There aren’t a lot of expat pilots who really want to go to China,” said Richard Laig, Manila-based partner for the Asia-Pacific region at consultancy Mango Aviation Partners Ltd. “There are places that are more comfortable.”

The imported aviators may do more than just chip away at a pilot shortage -- they can bring decades of experience to the flight deck. The Asia-Pacific region’s accident rate -- not just crashes but incidents such as landing gear malfunctions -- has increased since 2011, according to the International Air Transport Association.

That safety record also is worse than the global one. In Asia-Pacific, there were 3.2 accidents per million flights last year, compared with a worldwide rate of 1.8 per million.

“Some of the airlines see some value in having a Western accent in the cockpit,” Loveridge said. “They’ve got experience.”

That’s likely to become an even more expensive commodity in China’s skies. Airlines and leasing companies announced orders last year for 780 planes valued at about $102 billion. Chinese airlines will need 6,330 new planes -- worth $950 billion -- in the next two decades, according to Boeing Co.

That influx of aircraft means carriers like Chengdu can’t be fussy about where they hire. Airline officials gave Ross, the recruiter at Wasinc, the OK to hire in bulk wherever he could.

“They told me: ‘Any place you can find 15 to 20 pilots that want to interview, we’ll go there,”’ Ross said.

Source:  http://www.bloomberg.com

Piper PA-22-150 Tri-Pacer, N2569P: Accident occurred June 18, 2015 in Laconia, Belknap County, New Hampshire





LACONIA – An improperly seated fuel selector valve is the likely cause of the loss of engine power that caused a city insurance executive to crash land his private plane last June.

The National Safety Transportation Board said it could not definitively determine if the fuel valve selector was at fault, since the valve was moved by first responders to minimize the risk of fire, but it may have played a role in the June 18, 2015 accident.

In its final report the NTSB determined the probable cause of the incident was a total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined, because of insufficient evidence found during post-accident examination of the airframe and engine.

Thomas Volpe, 81, told investigated he did not remember a “single aspect” of the accident after he took off from his private airfield on Hadley Road, including the engine running rough and the subsequent forced landing. However, he did recall that prior to takeoff, the airplane and engine were operating fine and he had set the fuel selector to the right wing fuel tank.

Investigators determined there was no debris or water in the fuel in the plane and that the fuel lines were clear. The filter screens in the carburetor were also clean as was the the oil in the engine of the 1956 Piper PA-22 150.

The fuel selector was found in the near “off” position, but the Deputy Chief of the Laconia Fire Department told investigators it was set to the “right” tank when they arrived and turned it to what they thought was the off position for safety purposes.

When investigators examined the fuel selector they noted that when it was manually moved and set to each tank position, it was very difficult to feel when the valve seated into its respective detent. When Volpe was asked if he had any previously problems with the fuel selector not seating in the detents, he said no. But he did acknowledge that they were hard to feel. So much so, that when he first started flying the airplane he didn’t realize that the fuel selector had any detents until after he logged about 10 hours in the pilot’s seat.

Volpe who owns and operates Melcher & Prescott Insurance with his son Chris, had logged 937 hours of flight time, 21 of which were in the accident airplane. In 2015, he had flown the airplane about 2.5 hours.

A witness told investigators that she heard the airplane on the takeoff roll and turned around to watch it depart. When she saw the airplane it was just starting to climb toward the south and the engine was "spitting and sputtering."

She recounted that the airplane started a right turn toward her, but felt that the pilot saw her standing there so he banked to the left. The pilot then pulled up to avoid hitting a house, entered a right turn and descended into a field.

 The witness said that as the red and white airplane climbed over the house, there was a quick surge in engine power before it made a "pop, pop" sound followed by a total loss of power. She said the pilot was flying the airplane the entire time, but was "in trouble" from the time he took-off, up until the impact.

Laconia firefighters responded shortly after the crash was reported about 8:15 a.m. and used hydraulic tools to free Volpe from the wreckage. He sustained serious injuries, including damage to the vertebra in his back, and was hospitalized at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.

Source: http://www.citizen.com





http://registry.faa.gov/N2569P

NTSB Identification: ERA15FA241
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Thursday, June 18, 2015 in Laconia, NH
Probable Cause Approval Date: 02/17/2016
Aircraft: PIPER PA-22, registration: N2569P
Injuries: 1 Serious.

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

The pilot/owner was conducting a personal flight in the airplane. A witness reported that, during takeoff, the airplane's engine sputtered and then stopped producing power. The witness further reported that the pilot maneuvered the airplane to avoid hitting people and a house before the airplane descended and impacted a field. The pilot did not remember the accident but did recall that, before takeoff, the engine was operating normally and that he had set the fuel selector valve to the right tank. When first responders arrived on scene, they turned the fuel selector from the right tank position to the off position for safety reasons. 

A postaccident examination of the airplane found sufficient fuel onboard and no evidence of preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the engine or its accessories that would have precluded normal operation. During the examination, it was noted that when the fuel selector was manually moved and set to each tank position, it was very difficult to feel when the valve seated into each respective detent. When the pilot was asked if he had any previous problems with the fuel selector not seating in the detents, he said no. However, he did acknowledge that the detents were hard to feel and commented that when he first started flying the airplane, he did not realize that the fuel selector had any detents until he had flown the airplane for about 10 hours. Although possible, since the valve was moved by first responders after the accident, it could not be determined if the loss of engine power was the result of an improperly seated fuel selector valve.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
A total loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined because of insufficient evidence found during postaccident examination of the airframe and engine.




HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On June 18, 2015, about 0845 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-22-150, N2569P, was substantially damaged when it made a forced landing to a field shortly after takeoff from a private airstrip in Laconia, New Hampshire. The private pilot was seriously injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no visual flight rules flight plan was filed. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.

A witness stated that she heard the airplane on the takeoff roll and turned around to watch it depart. When she saw the airplane it was just starting to climb toward the south and the engine was "spitting and sputtering." The witness said the airplane started a right turn toward her but felt that the pilot saw her standing there so he banked to the left. The pilot then pulled up to avoid hitting a house, entered a right turn and descended into a field. The witness said that as the airplane climbed over the house, there was a quick surge in engine power before it made a "pop, pop" sound followed by a total loss of power. She said the pilot was flying the airplane the entire time, but was "in trouble" from the time he took-off up until the impact. 

The pilot stated that he did not remember a "single aspect" of the accident after he took off including the engine running rough and subsequent forced landing. However, he did recall that prior to takeoff, the airplane and engine were operating fine and he had set the fuel selector valve to the right wing fuel tank. 

PILOT INFORMATION

The pilot, age 81, held a private pilot certificate for airplane single-engine land and instrument airplane and a second-class medical issued on October 13, 2014. He reported a total of 937 total flight hours, of which, 21 hours were in the accident airplane. In the past year, he had flown the airplane about 2.5 hours.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

The two-seat, high-wing, fixed-gear airplane, serial number 22-2932, was manufactured in 1956. A review of the airplane's maintenance logbooks revealed the airplane was restored and the Lycoming O-320-A2B engine and was overhauled in 2011. The engine was equipped with a Sensenich 74DM6-0-58, fixed-pitch propeller. Since overhaul, the airplane and engine had accrued about 19 hours. The last annual inspection was completed on June 6, 2014. Since that time, the airplane and engine had accrued about 2.5 hours. 

METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION 

Weather reported at Laconia Municipal Airport (LCI), Laconia, New Hampshire, at 0835, was reported as wind from 250 degrees at 5 knots, visibility 10 miles, clear skies, temperature 17 degrees Celsius, dewpoint 12 degrees Celsius, and a barometric pressure setting of 30.07 inches mercury.

WRECKAGE INFORMATION

On-scene examination of the airplane revealed that it came to rest upright in a field on a heading of 266 degrees a few hundred yards southwest of the runway. From the point of impact to where the airplane came to rest was about 40 feet. All major components of the airframe were at the site and there was no post-impact fire. Both wings and the firewall sustained substantial damage. The empennage and tail control surfaces were not damaged.

The right wing sustained impact damage and both struts were bent. The fuel tank was intact and about 10 gallons of 100LL gasoline was drained from the tank. The fuel was absent of water and debris. The right main landing gear was torn from the airplane during impact.

The left wing sustained impact damage to the tip. The fuel tank was intact and about 10 gallons of 100LL gasoline was drained from the tank.The fuel was absent of debris and water.

Flight control continuity was established for all flight controls from the cockpit to the control surface.

The fuel selector was found in the near "off" position; however, according to the Assistant Chief of the Laconia Fire Department, the fuel selector was set to the "right" tank when they arrived on-scene.They turned it to what they thought was the off position for safety purposes. It was noted during the examination of the fuel selector that when it was manually moved and set to each tank position, it was very difficult to feel when the valve seated into its respective detent. When the pilot was asked if he had any previous problems with the fuel selector not seating in the detents, he said no. But, he did acknowledge that they were hard to feel. So much so, that when he first started flying the airplane he didn't realize that the fuel selector had any detents until he had flown the airplane for about 10 hours. 

Shop air was blown through the fuel lines from each tank down to the carburetor. All lines were clear. The gascolater was torn from the firewall and the bowl had separated during impact.

The engine sustained some impact damage, but all major accessories remained securely attached to the engine. The two-bladed propeller had separated from the engine and one blade was bent aft and exhibited gouging along the leading edge. Due to impact damage and the propeller being separated, a test-run of the engine was not possible. The other blade appeared undamaged. The engine was manually rotated via the crankshaft flange and compression and valve train continuity were produced for each cylinder. The spark plugs were removed and appeared new when compared to the Champion spark plug wear chart. The magnetos were removed and spun. Spark was produced to each ignition lead.

Continuity of the throttle and mixture controls was established from the cockpit to the carburetor. The carburetor was removed and disassembled. The finger screen was absent of debris and about 1-ounce of fuel was drained from the carburetor bowl. The fuel was absent of debris and water.The floats were intact and undamaged. Fuel squirted out of the accelerator pump chamber when manipulated.

The primer handle in the cockpit was full forward, but it was not locked. 

The oil plug was removed and a sufficient amount of honey-colored oil was observed.The oil screen was removed and was absent of debris.

No pre mishap mechanical deficiencies were noted with the engine or airplane that would have precluded normal operation at the time of the accident.

Piper PA-28-181 Archer II, Western New York Flying Club Inc, N2259Q: Accident occurred August 10, 2016 at Hamburg Inc Airport (4G2), Erie County, New York

WESTERN NEW YORK FLYING CLUB INC: http://registry.faa.gov/N2259Q

NTSB Identification: GAA16CA427
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, August 10, 2016 in Hamburg, NY
Probable Cause Approval Date: 09/22/2016
Aircraft: PIPER PA28, registration: N2259Q
Injuries: 3 Uninjured.

NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.

The pilot reported that about 7 nautical miles from the airport he mistook a road for the runway, which resulted in the airplane being above the normal approach path for landing. The pilot further reported that he reduced power to idle, applied full flaps, and entered a side slip, but the airplane did not touchdown until about ½ to ¾ down the runway. Subsequently, the airplane overran the runway, the landing gear collapsed, and the right wing impacted a guard rail on a road about 550 feet beyond the runway threshold. 

The right wing sustained substantial damage. 

The pilot did not report any mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

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

The pilot's failure to perform a go-around, which resulted in a landing area overshoot, a runway overrun, a landing gear collapse, and a collision with a guard rail 


HAMBURG, N.Y. (WKBW) - Three people made it out safely when their single-engine plane crashed just after takeoff in Hamburg.

This happened at Heltz Road and Lakeview Road right near the 90.

According to police, the plane skipped on landing, and crashed near a ditch.

No reported injuries.

Story and video:  http://www.wkbw.com

Cessna 210, Titan Motorcars LLC, N9693T: Incident occurred August 16, 2016 in Chino, San Bernardino County, California

TITAN MOTORCARS LLC: http://registry.faa.gov/N9693T

FAA Flight Standards District Office: FAA Riverside FSDO-21

Date: 17-AUG-16
Time: 01:04:00Z
Regis#: N9693T
Aircraft Make: CESSNA
Aircraft Model: 210
Event Type: Incident
Highest Injury: None
Damage: Minor
Flight Phase: LANDING (LDG)
City: CHINO
State: California

AIRCRAFT LANDED SHORT OF THE RUNWAY, CHINO, CALIFORNIA.

Mooney M20J 201, N969RS: Incident occurred August 16, 2016 in Westerly, Washington County, Rhode Island

http://registry.faa.gov/N969RS

FAA Flight Standards District Office: FAA Boston FSDO-61

Date: 17-AUG-16
Time: 00:30:00Z
Regis#: N969RS
Aircraft Make: MOONEY
Aircraft Model: M20J
Event Type: Incident
Highest Injury: None
Damage: Unknown
Flight Phase: LANDING (LDG)
City: WESTERLY
State: Rhode Island

AIRCRAFT ON LANDING, GEAR COLLAPSED, WESTERLY, RHODE ISLAND.

PZL Swidnik PW-6U Glider, Cypress Soaring Inc., N212EC: Accident occurred August 14, 2016 in Llano, Los Angeles County, California

NTSB Identification: GAA16CA430
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, August 14, 2016 in Llano, CA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 01/18/2017
Aircraft: PZL-SWIDNIK PW 6U, registration: N212EC
Injuries: 1 Uninjured.

NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.

According to the glider pilot, while being towed during the takeoff roll, the glider encountered a bump and he heard a loud bang. He reported that he was contacted by radio and informed that the aft canopy had separated from the glider. The pilot recalled that although the glider controllability was normal he communicated with the tow airplane pilot, executed one pattern and landed the glider. The pilot reported that during the preflight inspection he failed to properly close and lock the two canopy latches for the aft canopy. The glider sustained substantial damage to the aft canopy and the vertical stabilizer.

The pilot reported that were no mechanical failures or anomalies with any portion of the glider that would have prevented normal flight operations.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The pilot’s failure to properly secure the two aft canopy latches during the preflight inspection, which resulted in the canopy separating from the glider during the takeoff roll and substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer.

Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board: http://app.ntsb.gov/pdf  

Docket And Docket Items - National Transportation Safety Board: http://dms.ntsb.gov/pubdms 

CYPRESS SOARING INC: http://registry.faa.gov/N212EC

NTSB Identification: GAA16CA430
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, August 14, 2016 in Llano, CA
Aircraft: PZL-SWIDNIK PW 6U, registration: N212EC
Injuries: 1 Uninjured.

NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.

According to the glider pilot, while being towed during the takeoff roll, the glider encountered a bump and he heard a loud bang. He reported that he was contacted by radio and informed that the aft canopy had separated from the glider. The pilot recalled that although the glider controllability was normal he communicated with the tow airplane pilot, executed one pattern and landed the glider. The pilot reported that during the preflight inspection he failed to properly close and lock the two canopy latches for the aft canopy. The glider sustained substantial damage to the aft canopy and the vertical stabilizer.

The pilot reported that were no mechanical failures or anomalies with any portion of the glider that would have prevented normal flight operations.