Posted on 12/23/2013 9:54:30 AM PST by crazydad
http://www.check-six.com/Crash_Sites/SunValley_Mall_Crash.htm
I remember that. I remember briefly contemplating a run to Sun Valley Mall that evening and deciding not to.
Being fifteen at the time my buddy and I went for last minute shopping for his dad. He wanted to sit right where the plane came to rest. Thank god we didn’t.
My parents and I were planning to go to the mall that evening because Macy’s had an event and my mom wanted to go. I talked her out of it because something did not feel right. I was not sure what it was, now looking back I am glad. Yes I remember that night and hearing all the sirens. Also how doctors and nurses who did not have to work all called in to help.
I assume it was a private plane either approaching or departing Buchanan airport. What was the cause of the crash?
In September 1972 a privately owned F86 crashed on take off into a Farrells ice cream parlour and wiped out about 14 people. The pilot simply lacked experience and got behind the power curve.
http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20001214X38454&key=1
NTSB Identification: LAX86MA074.
The docket is stored on NTSB microfiche number 33490.
Accident occurred Monday, December 23, 1985 in CONCORD, CA
Aircraft: BEECH 95-A55, registration: N1494G
Injuries: 7 Fatal,17 Serious,62 Minor.
NTSB investigators traveled in support of this investigation and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
DRG ARR, THE ACFT WAS VECTORED FOR AN LDA RWY 19R APCH. AFTER BEING CLRD FOR THE APCH, THE PLT WAS ADVISED THAT RADAR SVC WAS TERMINATED & TOLD TO CONTACT THE TWR. AT 2033 PST, HE RPRTD INBND AT THE FINAL APCH FIX & WAS CLRD FOR THE APCH.APRX 2 MIN LATER, HE DECLARED A MISSED APCH. THE TWR CONTROLLER (CTLR) INSTRUCTED THE PLT TO CONTACT TRAVIS DEP CTL, BUTONLY A ‘GARBLED’ REPLY WAS HEARD. THERE WAS NO FURTHER RDO CONTACT WITH THE ACFT. AFTER CROSSING THE ARPT ON A SSE HDG, THE ACFT ENTERED A LEFT CLBG TURN AS IF TO BEGIN THE MISSED APCH PROCEDURE, THEN IT TURNED RGT AS IF TO BEGIN A DWNWND &BASE LEG FOR RWY 1L. WITNESSES RPRTD THE ACFT ENTERED CLDS & SHORTLY THEREAFTER, IT REAPPEARED IN A STEEP, DSCNDG, RGT TURN. IT THEN CRASHED INTO A DEPT STORE APRX 1 MI SOUTH OF THE ARPT WHILE IN A 32 DEG RGT BANK, 6 DEG NOSE LOW ATTITUDE.NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE/MALFUNCTION WAS FND THAT WOULD HAVE LED TO THE ACDNT. THE WX (IN PART) WAS: 400’ OBSCD, VIS 3/4 MI WITH FOG; SAME AS LDA MINS. MINS FOR CIRCLING APCH WERE 600’ & 1 MI. NO COCKPIT VOICE RECORDER INSTALLED OR REQD.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
AIRCRAFT HANDLING..NOT MAINTAINED..PILOT IN COMMAND
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
SPATIAL DISORIENTATION..PILOT IN COMMAND
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
SPIRAL..INADVERTENT..PILOT IN COMMAND
Contributing Factors
LIGHT CONDITION..DARK NIGHT
Contributing Factors
WEATHER CONDITION..LOW CEILING
Contributing Factors
WEATHER CONDITION..FOG
Contributing Factors
IFR PROCEDURE..NOT FOLLOWED..PILOT IN COMMAND
PDF reports:
Factual
http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/GenPDF.aspx?id=LAX86MA074&rpt=fa
Probable cause
http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/GenPDF.aspx?id=LAX86MA074&rpt=fi
Thanks. Spatial disorientation can even happen to trained instrument rated pilots. I have an instrument rating but never flew in actual IFR during training, only under the hood or goggles. I always felt that because of that I was not really trained even though I passed the tests and got the rating. I never did fly actual IFR.
Do you remember the first time you trained under a hood?
Oh its possible if you lose concentration or your mind just freezes under pressure. It happened to me during training on a take off from the Oakland airport.
Instrument flying requires a constant scan of a few primary instruments including the attitude indicator. The pilot probably just lost it under the pressure of a missed approach in minimum IFR conditions. What happens is the pilot starts to disbelieve the instruments and believe his sensations instead, a fatal flaw.
Single pilot IFR is high pressure flying when the conditions are at minimums. Punching through a cloud at 1000 feet is no big deal but bringing the plane all the way to the missed approach point and still not seeing the runway....I don’t think it is for the faint of heart. And I think that some pilots find they don’t really have what it takes until it is too late.
Spatial-D, derived from physical cues sent by the inner-ear, can be a physically overwhelming experience.
Your body screams at you that you are at such-and-such an attitude and your body fights your mind. Your rational mind says one thing (trust the instruments) but your body fights back—hard.
It takes extreme will-power and discipline to trust your instruments and win the fight with your body. That is why an instrument license is issued. . .to certify those that are rated to fly under IMC conditions. Add bad weather and/or an indefinite horizon and other misleading visual cues and you are in for a world of hurt.
Experienced and inexperienced pilots suffer from spatial-d. Not all survive.
(Close your eyes, spin in a circle for a few turns and then open your eyes and try and walk a straight line. Same sort of thing you are dealing with.)
I never trained under a hood. I only have about 25 hours on a Piper Archer 2 flying VFR only!
At least for me I can look at the 6 pack and get an idea of what’s going on even if I flew into clouds. I would just hope I could get above, below, or out of them.
Maintaining a heading and keeping the wings level shouldn’t be that difficult as long as the instruments are operating correctly.
I’ve experienced some of that while flying. Very weird to say the least!
Well that explains it. Many pilots have died with just that attitude. You would last less than a minute in IFR without several hours of under the hood or goggles training. Just wait till you go under the hood, and I mean a good one where you cannot see out the bottom or sides.
It's difficult to disconnect what the eyes and instruments indicate with what the body and inner ear indicate. It takes practice. Doing it on a computer using Flight Simulator is easy because there is no conflicting information.
The first time I used a hood the instructor lifted the hood and I was in a high bank turn. I thought I was level.
Well said. Who ya gonna believe, your lying middle ear or your own eyes.
So far, this is the only thread I've ever read that has made me motion-sick.
Hoppity-clopter student out of CCR at HAI for a while, way back when.
I remember hearing about that, because it happened soon after I moved to the east coast and I was still homesick. My first apartment was a few miles away, in Concord. I shopped there all the time.
That looks pretty good. Just about any hood or goggles I wore allowed at least a little glimpse of the outside if you cocked your head just right. That is why I never felt truly confident flying in actual IFR. In actual IFR you cannot cheat, its the real deal. If I were to take IFR training again I would take the training in the winter when actual IFR is common. My training was in the summer.
My instructor thought is was fun to “play in the fog.” He was good and an example of how confident one can get with sufficient experience. Eventually you beat back your inherent tendency to believe your middle ear but it takes time, and the amount of time varies with the individual.
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