Saturday, May 06, 2017

Short SD-330, N334AC, Air Cargo Carrier - ACC Integrated Services Inc: Fatal accident occurred May 05, 2017 at Yeager Airport (KCRW), Charleston, Kanawha County, West Virginia

The National Transportation Safety Board traveled to the scene of this accident. 

Aviation Accident Preliminary Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf

Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Charleston 

ACC Integrated Services Inc: http://registry.faa.gov/N334AC 

NTSB Identification: DCA17FA109 
Nonscheduled 14 CFR Part 135: Air Taxi & Commuter
Accident occurred Friday, May 05, 2017 in Charleston, WV
Aircraft: SHORT BROS. & HARLAND SD3 30, registration: N334AC
Injuries: 2 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 May 5, 2017 at 6:51 a.m. eastern daylight time (EDT), Air Cargo Carriers flight 1260, a Shorts SD3-30, N334AC, crashed during landing on runway 5 at the Charleston Yeager International Airport (CRW), Charleston, West Virginia. The airplane was destroyed and the two pilots suffered fatal injuries. The flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 135 as a cargo flight from Louisville International Airport (SDF), Louisville, Kentucky. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident.

Those who may have information that might be relevant to the National Transportation Safety Board investigation may contact them by email eyewitnessreport@ntsb.gov, and any friends and family who want to contact investigators about the accident should email assistance@ntsb.gov.

Bill English 
 Bill English is a National Transportation Safety Board Investigator in Charge in the Major Aviation Investigations Division.




Anh Ho

Anh K. Ho
October 21, 1985  -  May 5, 2017

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved daughter, sister, aunt, and friend, First Officer Anh K. Ho. Anh died at 8:34am on Friday, May 5, 2017 from injuries sustained in a plane crash in Yeager Airport, West Virginia. 

Anh was born on October 21, 1985 in Vietnam, and became an American citizen. From the very first day she could, Anh walked, if not ran, to the beat of her own drum. She was a vibrant soul, one who literally lit up the room whenever she entered. 

Anh also had a spunky and sassy ''edge'' to her, a quality that we all loved and aspired. She loved to explore the world, from the busy streets of Korea to the emerald Isles of Ireland, to the tulips in Amsterdam, and to the wonders of South America. Anh left not just an imprint, but everlasting joy in the hearts of those she met, loved, and befriended. 

Anh had numerous hopes and dreams, but what set Anh apart from others was that those hopes and dreams did not remain simply so. The amazing truth is, once Anh set her mind to something, these hopes and dreams became reality. From the east coast to the west coast for college at the University of California, Irvine, from continent to continent, whatever new interest or hobby came to Anh would be happily pursued, like her love of flying. 

Anh was a researcher, teacher, wanderlust traveler, and fearless pilot, but her most important role was a loyal, dedicated, and committed daughter, sister, aunt, and friend. She will be dearly missed and survived by her mother, Nga Thi Bui, six brothers, four sisters, and over seventeen nieces and nephews. She was also preceded in death by her beloved father Thanh Van Ho.

Service will take place at Mobile Memorial Gardens Funeral Home, 6040 Three Notch Road, Mobile, Alabama 36619 at 9:00 AM.  Contributions in memory of Anh K. Ho may be made to http://www.gofundme.com/anh-ho in lieu of flowers. 

http://www.mobilefuneralservice.com



A cargo plane that crashed Friday at Yeager Airport could be removed as early as Monday, according to a press release from the airport. 

As soon as investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board finish examining the crash site, a wooded area on a slope near the airport, a recovery company will remove the plane.

The plane will be cut into pieces, with each section lifted out of the site by helicopter or crane. Remnants of the plane will be loaded onto flatbed tractor trailers, then removed from the airport.

A wing that was already removed from the crash site is currently in a hangar at the airport. Yeager Airport spokesman Mike Plante said the NTSB is checking every detail of the plane to determine a cause of the crash, from looking at where switches were set to where the pilots were sitting during the crash. They use various methods, including sending a drone to capture footage of the crash scene.

The NTSB is also investigating other factors including how long the two crew members who were killed in the crash were on board the plane.

Plante said the removal process will not affect airport operations. The plane was owned and operated by Milwaukee-based Air Cargo Carriers, a contractor for UPS. After the NTSB’s investigation is complete the plane’s remnants will be released to Air Cargo Carriers’ insurance company.

The two people on the plane, Anh K. Ho, 31, of Cross Lanes, and Johnathan Pablo Alvarado, 47, of Stamford, Texas, died in the crash.

The airport was closed for 30 hours after the crash. According to airport officials, about 1,136 outbound passengers and 1,200 inbound passengers were affected by the airport’s closure.

After the airplane is removed, Clean Harbor, the airport’s environmental contractor, will clean the site to clear any leftover fuel or hydraulic fluid.

West Virginia American Water said water sampled from a creek near the crash site was not contaminated. The creek flows into the Elk River.

NTSB will continue to investigate the cause of the crash.

Plante said a preliminary report of the crash should be released in about a month.

- Original article can be found here:  http://www.wvgazettemail.com



CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The names of the two pilots who died Friday morning in a cargo plane crash at Yeager Airport were released Saturday evening.

Johnathan Pablo Alvarado, 47, of Stamford, Texas, and Anh K. Ho, 31, of Cross Lanes, were working for Air Cargo Carriers. Company president Steve Altnau said their families had been notified.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of Mr. Alvarado and Ms. Ho,” Yeager Airport Police Chief Joe Crawford said.

Meanwhile, the NTSB held its second and final media briefing in Charleston Saturday where investigator-in-charge Bill English told reporters the cargo plane wasn’t required to have a black box.

“This aircraft is not equipped with black boxes, flight data recorder or CVR. It’s not required to by their regulations,” English said during the briefing at Yeager Airport. “Our initial information is that there are no other electronic devices on board that record any significant information.”

English previously said there was no distress call from the crew.




The Short 330, owned by Air Cargo Carriers, struck the runway 340 feet after the beginning of the runway threshold. From that first contact point it skidded a total of 650 feet off the left of the runway and down the hillside, English said.

“It’s in a very thick-wooded area. It’s low brush but very tangled and hard to get at. It’s also very muddy in there, a very slippery clay-type of mud so it’s very slow-going,” he said.

But investigators were able to reach the cockpit Saturday where they began checking instruments and controls.

“All major components have been accounted for,” English said.

Investigators are months away from determining what caused the crash at just before 7 o’clock Friday morning. Those who have viewed a pair of videos said it appeared the plane was coming in hot as it arrived from Louisville filled with UPS packages. Those videos showed it was titled to the left, they said. English said it was too early to began analyzing the information collected so far.

“We’ll be working on that,” he said.

The operations side of the NTSB investigative team is building a history of the pilots including what they were doing 72 hours before the crash along with their training history, English said.

The left wing that separated from the plane shortly after impact was taken to the West Virginia Air National Guard earlier Saturday. The rest of the wreckage will be moved off the hillside in the coming days but that will be a challenge, English said.

“Our plan for the next few days is to finish the documentation of the aircraft and begin the recovery of the aircraft from the woods. It’s going to be quite a difficult process. It’s very difficult to get in there with the dirt road, very slippery mud to get up in there to get the heavy equipment working to get the aircraft out. I’m starting to do that process now. I’ve got a couple of different options to get that out,” English said.

The main fuselage, tail and right wing are all together about 100 feet down the slope from the runway in a hollow of trees. The front part of the aircraft is pointing down the hill toward Barlow Drive. It’s laying on its left side with the right wing folded over the top.

U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito attended Saturday’s briefing and said she had confidence in the NTSB to find out what happened.

“You can tell by the professionalism and the way that this has been handled that they know their job, they know what they’re doing and we’re going to get the right answers,” Capito said.

A statement from U.S. Senator Joe Manchin was read at the briefing expressing his thoughts and prayers for the families of the victims.

The airport reopened Saturday afternoon after about a 30-hour shutdown.

The packages on the plane could be turned back over to UPS in the near future, English said.

English said Saturday’s briefing would be the final one in Charleston. He said all other information would come through the NTSB’s media relations office.

Story and video:  http://wvmetronews.com

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