Additional Participating Entity:
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Aviation Accident Preliminary Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf
Romag Air Services Inc: http://registry.faa.gov/N34VF
Accident Number: ERA18LA072
Date & Time: 01/29/2018, 1650 EST
Registration: N34VF
Aircraft: CESSNA P210N
Injuries: 1 Minor
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General Aviation - Business
On January 29, 2018, about 1650 eastern standard time, a Cessna P210N, N34VF, operated by Romag Air Services Inc. was substantially damaged after a loss of engine power and subsequent forced landing near Farmington, Pennsylvania. The commercial pilot received minor injuries. The flight was operated in accordance with Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a business flight. Instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) prevailed and an instrument flight rules flight plan was filed for the flight that departed Montgomery County Airpark (GAI) Gaithersburg, Maryland, about 1600, and was destined for Wheeling Ohio County Airport (HLG), Wheeling, West Virginia.
The pilot reported that while in cruise flight, at 8,000 ft mean sea level (msl), in snowy conditions, shortly after he turned on the pitot heat switch, the airplane suddenly felt "heavy" and the airspeed decreased. He reported that that the engine rpm was indicating zero. The pilot declared an emergency, switched fuel tanks, turned on the fuel pump, and attempted to restart the engine, but engine power could not be restored. In addition, he stated that the propeller did not "budge" and was not wind milling. Air traffic control then provided the pilot with radar vectors to Nemacolin Airport (PA88), Farmington, Pennsylvania, but the pilot stated that he would not be able to reach that airport.
He reported IMC conditions until he broke out of the clouds about 300 ft above ground level in a valley surrounded by hills. He turned the airplane towards a small field and attempted to land, but during final approach, the airplane struck several trees and a power line, shearing off part of the left wing before the airplane struck the ground and skidded to a stop. The airplane came to rest upright. The fuel tanks were breached during the collision, which resulted in a fire that enveloped the airplane as the pilot evacuated.
According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, the airplane was equipped with a single-engine, was manufactured in 1979, and incorporated retractable tricycle landing gear. It was equipped with a Continental Motors Inc, TSIO-520, 325 hp engine. At the time of the accident, the airplane had accumulated 4,268 airframe total hours and the engine had accumulated 750 total hours since overhaul. The airplane had flown for 21 hours since its most recent annual inspection that was completed on November 17, 2017.
According to the FAA and pilot records, the pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land and instrument airplane. His reported total flight time was 5,840 total hours, with 4,620 hours in the accident airplane make and model. In the last 90 days, he flew 42 hours.
Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information
Aircraft Manufacturer: CESSNA
Registration: N34VF
Model/Series: P210N N
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Amateur Built: No
Operator: ROMAG AIR SERVICES INC
Operating Certificate(s) Held: None
Meteorological Information and Flight Plan
Conditions at Accident Site: Instrument Conditions
Condition of Light: Dusk
Observation Facility, Elevation: K2G4, 2933 ft msl
Observation Time: 2135 UTC
Distance from Accident Site: 15 Nautical Miles
Temperature/Dew Point: 1°C / -4°C
Lowest Cloud Condition: Scattered / 6000 ft agl
Wind Speed/Gusts, Direction: 4 knots, 190°
Lowest Ceiling: Overcast
Visibility: 1 Miles
Altimeter Setting: 29.98 inches Hg
Type of Flight Plan Filed: IFR
Departure Point: GAITHERSBURG, MD (GAI)
Destination: WHEELING, WV (HLG)
Wreckage and Impact Information
Crew Injuries: 1 Minor
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Passenger Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Fire: On-Ground
Ground Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 1 Minor
Latitude, Longitude: 39.791944, -79.478611 (est)
Dr. Csaba L. Magassy, MD FACS
Plastic Surgeon
Mclean, Virginia
STEWART TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A plane crashed in the 600 block of Kentuck Road near Kentuck Knob in Stewart Township, Fayette County, on Monday evening, emergency officials confirmed.
Officials said the pilot was the only one aboard the plane. They said he was having engine trouble and put in an early mayday call.
The air traffic controller guided him to an empty field, where he crash-landed and hit a power line. The plane caught fire, but he escaped. He suffered a leg injury and was taken to a local hospital, officials said.
The pilot was 79-year-old Dr. Csaba Magassy.
Magassy spoke with Pittsburgh's Action News 4 reporter Beau Berman from his hospital room and said he is a plastic surgeon based in Virginia. He said he was flying from Maryland's Montgomery County airport to Wheeling, West Virginia, for a post-operative procedure for one of his patients.
Magassy sustained a cut to his left knee that required stitches. Doctors gave him IV fluids and performed a CAT scan on his chest as a precaution.
Magassy walked Berman through the crash landing.
“I was flying at 8,000 feet, middle of a snowstorm, and I was talking to Johnstown approach, when suddenly my engine quit. When I broke out from the snow I was about… between 800 to 1000 ft ... between two mountain peaks. So I quickly lowered the gear and picked the point between two trees and sheared the wings off and decelerated and came to a stop on the other side which was in a clearing. I quickly unbuckled myself and got out the door and then… poof…. The whole airplane blew up," said Magassy.
Magassy said state police arrived soon after and he was transported to Uniontown Hospital.
He told Berman he had logged more than 6,000 miles flying in his lifetime and first flew for the Air Force in 1961.
Magassy said he was born in Hungary before coming to the United States in the 1950s.
He told Berman that his fiancee and children called him at the hospital to ask if he was all right.
“Glad to be alive," he said.
The FAA sent WTAE TV the following information about the crash.
"A Cessna C210 aircraft reportedly had an engine-related problem and made a forced landing in a field near Farmington, PA at about 4:50 p.m. today. The aircraft departed Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport/Shepherd Field in Martinsburg for Wheeling Ohio County Airport in Wheeling. The FAA will investigate and the National Transportation Safety Board will determine the probable cause of the accident," said spokesman, Jim Peters.
Story and video: http://www.wtae.com
He was taken to a local hospital by ambulance for a minor injury to his leg, according to State Police Trooper Robert Broadwater. The pilot, whose name has not been released, was the only person on the plane.
Broadwater said the pilot was experiencing engine trouble and called the Federal Aviation Administration for assistance. They directed him toward the field and assisted him in the landing just after 5 p.m.
Police did not have information on the type of plane, where the plane took off or where it was headed. The FAA is investigating.
Story, video and photo ➤ https://www.heraldstandard.com
STEWART TOWNSHIP, Pa. - A small plane crashed near Ohiopyle State Park in Fayette County.
Dispatchers confirm the Cessna P210N Centurion went down at 4:48 p.m. in Stewart Township.
The pilot was the only person on the plane and suffered minor injuries.
The Federal Aviation Administration, which is handling the investigation, said the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing after the plane suffered an engine-related problem.
He was headed from Martinsburg to Wheeling in West Virginia, crossing Western Pennsylvania, the FAA said.
Story, video and photo ➤ http://www.wpxi.com
Glad to hear that the pilot made it out and will be alright. That's pretty rugged terrain up in that area with few fields to land in. Good job in a bad situation!
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