Posted on 04/13/2025 4:41:38 PM PDT by BenLurkin
A private plane that crashed in upstate New York over the weekend was carrying a close-knit family of physicians and distinguished recent student-athletes, bound for a trip to the Catskills for a birthday celebration and the Passover holiday.
The twin-engine Mitsubishi MU-2B went down shortly after noon Saturday in a muddy field in Copake, New York, near the Massachusetts line, killing all six people aboard, according to authorities and a family member who spoke to The Associated Press.
Among the victims were Karenna Groff, a former MIT soccer player named the 2022 NCAA woman of the year; her father, a neuroscientist, Dr. Michael Groff; her mother, Dr. Joy Saini, a urogynecologist and Karenna Groff’s boyfriend, James Santoro, another recent MIT graduate, according to James’ father, John Santoro.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
I would never fly on a Mitsubishi MU-2B.
Its just a bad aircraft. No margin for error.
That’s a lot of airplane for a private pilot.
What makes it bad?
Correct. A very high performance aircraft that is also very demanding of the pilot.
The performance is compelling. But a lot of good pilots have gotten behind when operating this aircraft.
It’s pretty hot...a screamer. Not for amateurs.
I worked at Boeing for over Twenty years in experimental Flight test. I’ve flown a bit as an Instrumentation engineer.
I bought a big sail boat instead of an airplane. They both fly, just in a different way.
Every time I’ve flown with a private pilot or a regional
Alaska pilot. I noted the very difference in how Boeing pilots in experimental aircraft fly vs. private pilots.
A single pilot can become overworked very quickly.
Then they make mistakes, because they don’t have a second opinion.
In a sail boat if things go to hell, rig the proper sail
“Heave too” and just ride back and forth. You can wait it out.
You can’t do that in an airplane.
It is not that the Mitsubishi was less airworthy then say a B777, but the pilot workload is was different.
So they weren't flying in a plane registered in Lithuania?
I doubt the pilot was just a “private” pilot - no doubt a Commercial rated pilot if he was hired for the flight and probably IFR rated..
It has no ailerons. Roll control is spoilers only. During slow speed flight or an engine failure the last thing you need is more drag and less lift.
It was a bad concept from the beginning, but fast as blazes.
EC
It has no ailerons. Roll control is spoilers only. During slow speed flight or an engine failure the last thing you need is more drag and less lift.
It was a bad concept from the beginning, but fast as blazes.
EC
Had never heard of this airplane before. The following from Wikipedia is scary and I don’t even know for sure what all of it means:
“The MU-2 has performance similar to a small jet; however, as it weighs less than 12,500 pounds (5,700 kg), under U.S. pilot certification rules in force at the time, a pilot holding a multi-engine rating for much slower light twin piston-engine aircraft was allowed to fly the MU-2 with only a simple flight instructor endorsement. Inexperience with the MU-2’s higher speeds, altitudes, and climb and descent rates resulted in many crashes.
“Standard engine-out procedures are counterproductive when flying the MU-2: the commonly taught procedure of reducing flap following an engine failure on takeoff leads to a critical reduction in lift in the MU-2 with its unusually large and effective flaps. ... Additionally, the MU-2 is sensitive to trim settings, and it is critical to promptly trim the aircraft properly in all phases of flight.[4]
“The absence of adverse yaw eliminates the need to use rudder for coordinated flight, but proper and prompt use of rudder is vital to counter the aircraft’s tendency to roll in reaction to engine torque; at low airspeed, the aircraft will rapidly roll and enter an accelerated stall if the pilot applies full power without adequate preparation...”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_MU-2#Safety_concerns
A single pilot prop plane should be designed with multiple safety features. Speedy aircraft by a single pilot is asking for trouble.
Bad JuJu flying in IMC and heavy icing.
Short and stubby doesn’t inspire confidence in its stability at low speed.
*Sad PING*
What a shame. A lot of brainpower lost in that crash. :(
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