Posted on 06/19/2025 7:56:12 AM PDT by DFG
The pilot of a small private jet that crash landed in southern California last month and killed everyone on board, including a famous drummer, clipped a power line during landing while flying too low a preliminary report has revealed.
The Cessna 550 Citation plummeted into San Diego's Murphy Canyon neighborhood in the early hours of May 22 as it made its final approach for Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport.
Daniel Williams, a former drummer for metalcore band The Devil Wears Prada, and famed music producer Dave Shapiro - who is believed to have been the pilot - were among the six people killed in the crash.
Several factors contributed to the fatal crash, including the poor weather conditions that Shapiro was navigating during the descent, according to the National Transportation Safety Board's preliminary report released Wednesday.
The airport's weather data system and a runway lighting system designed to guide pilots as they approach the runway were also inoperable, the NTSB report reviewed by the Daily Mail revealed.
Shapiro was flying below the minimum crossing altitude as he approached the airport. Roughly two miles away from the airport, he struck power transmission lines about 95 feet above the ground, slicing the tail of his plane and damaging the stabilizers.
The crash killed everyone aboard the jet and left eight people on the ground with minor injuries. The crash damaged one home and sent debris and jet fuel down the street, igniting 20 vehicles in flames, the report said.
The fatal plane crash comes amid a spate of aviation accidents including just last week when an Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner crashed just minutes after take-off, killing all but one of 242 people on board.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Was the pilot’s name Wi Tu Lo?
As I retired long ago, I have no up to date approach plates for this airport.
Bur first....there is no requirement that the glide slope must be working. You can legally shoot an approach using the localizer only....but the minimums will be much higher. How much higher depends on terrain and other obstacles.
But regardless of all of that, there is no excuse for being at tree top level two miles from touchdown.
Usually that happens because at some point well out from the runway, the pilot sees the ground and thinks he can “duck under” and make a contact approach.
With or without A GLIDESLOPE THERE IS NO AIRPORT i AM AWARE OF THAT PUTS YOU THAT LOW TWO MILES OUT. AT THE SMALLER AIRPORTS, 200 FT. IS THE ABSOLUTE MINIMUM AT THE APPROACH LIGHTS. If at that point you have the lights in sight or the runway you can legally land.
A clear case of pilot error.
“I know nothing about air traffic control,”
He was cleared to land by regional ATC. No tower assistance required.
So what is your point? Do you have some inside baseball facts as to what happened?
“Shapiro was flying below the minimum crossing altitude as he approached the airport”
The flight path documented by ADS-B is well aligned with the approach horizontally and vertically as it crossed the final approach fix (PENYY) at 2,500 feet, though it deviated below the procedure as the aircraft crossed the final waypoint PALOS.
A male pilot...
.
The video can be found here: www.youtube.com
At about the thirteen minute mark, Captain Steve states that the plane size precluded it from the type of approach the pilot was making.
“Perhaps someone forget to reset his altimeter prior to approach.”
That may be true but not a factor as his flight level setting, 29.92, was very close to the local 29.89.
Also, he was at correct altitude on final before he deviated.
“So what is your point?”
Troll alert
More likely a low IFR time pilot trying to VFR in IFR conditions.
“With or without A GLIDESLOPE THERE IS NO AIRPORT i AM AWARE OF THAT PUTS YOU THAT LOW TWO MILES OUT. AT THE SMALLER AIRPORTS, 200 FT. IS THE ABSOLUTE MINIMUM AT THE APPROACH LIGHTS. “
The transmission towers were located on a hill that had an elevation just over 400 feet.
“As I retired long ago, I have no up to date approach plates for this airport.”
https://www.flightaware.com/resources/airport/KMYF/IAP/ILS+OR+LOC+RWY+28R
“More likely a low IFR time pilot trying to VFR in IFR conditions.”
He had an ATP rating.
>beloved
Fox is always doing this: “Music legend _________ croaks”.
Everyone scratches head together. “Who?”
They seem obsessed with some tatted creature, ‘Jellyroll’?
He could have landed at Gillespie field in El Cajon. He flew right over it to get to Montgomery Field.
Weather was below minimums, pilot should have diverted. But he was picking up his next passengers there. He decided to get below the clouds to see if he could pick up the runway.
The airport tower was unmanned during those hours. He was only talking to the ATC center, not switched over to tower.
Unreal bad decision in his pushing a bad position.
“Which makes me wonder, why are airplanes apparently allowed to land at an unstaffed airfield.”
Happens all over the country. Thousands of airfields, I would dare say most have NO tower or staff at all beyond maybe a fuel desk. CTAF frequency, etc all work well. But at night, below minimums, it was appalling decision making.
No doubt feeling pressure because that’s where his next passengers were going to meet him.
“the runway lights were not working”
Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport maintains portions of the airfield lighting system, including runway edge lights, also known as runway lights. The Airport confirms the runway lights were operational at the time of the incident.
https://www.insidesandiego.org/operations-overview-montgomery-gibbs-executive-airport
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