Fiery Plane Crash Kills 6 (North Las Vegas Airport, Dec 26)

klas-tv.com ^

[chance33_98]

Fiery Plane Crash Kills 6

(Dec. 26) Evening -- NTSB investigators and the plane's manufacturers have been on the scene of a fatal plane crash on Christmas Day. They're trying to figure out how the small single engine privately owned plane crashed at the North Las Vegas Airport as it was attempting to take off. But they are still having difficulty identifying the six passengers, four adults and two children, who died in the fiery crash.

NTSB investigators began surveying the plane crash from above. But spent most of the day in the 12-foot wash basin where the plane crashed in flames. The NTSB asked the plane's manufacturers to assist in examining the engine and body of the plane to determine if a mechanical problem prevented the plane from taking off. That's what eyewitnesses described happening to the plane Thursday.

Eyewitness Herb Sachs said, "Then it made its right turn, what we call a cross wind turn, and then saw it go down and down and down. And then I saw a puff of smoke."

"We'll look at everything. You look at everything every time. You look at the human factor, the operations factor, the weather factor and the machine. We'll look at the maintenance history, those kinds of records we'll be looking for," said NTSB investigator Howard Plagens.

But the fiery explosion left few clues for the investigators. The bodies are unidentifiable and little else remains to indicate where these four adults and two children were going on Christmas Day. The pilot did not file a flight plan.

The plane's owner just recently leased hanger space at the North Las Vegas Airport. But the owners incorporated in New Castle, Delaware. It is apparently common to register planes in that state. Some pilots say the Beechcraft Bonanza plane is a small plane. And while it does seat six, the weight ratio on the plane plays a role in its ability to take off.

The burnt remains of this plane have been moved to an airport hanger so that investigators can get a better look at the plane's parts. They are trying to figure out what caused the plane to crash.

Eyewitness News has also learned that people close to the passengers are on their way to Las Vegas from California and the East Coast to identify the victims on the plane. It may be only then that we learn who these people are.

(Dec. 26) Morning -- Federal investigators are at the scene of the deadly airplane crash that killed six people Thursday at the North Las Vegas airport. The privately owned single engine plane crashed at the airport on Christmas Day as it was attempting to take off.

All six of the passengers, four adults and two children died in the fiery crash. FAA records show that the plane was built in 1980 and was owned by Pat Car Air Incorporated of Wilmington, Delaware. But private plane owners say that many aircraft are incorporated in Delaware, but are based out of other cities because Delaware has a favorable base for airplanes.

[JustPiper]

Unkown passengers, recently leased, well, except for the kids we would almost know who flew this plane

[FairOpinion]

"Unkown passengers, recently leased"

==

It does make you wonder -- the presence of children means nothing -- jihadist are proudest if their children "grow up to be suicide bombers".

It is also odd that nobody filed a missing persons report.

[Lokibob]

"NTSB investigators began surveying the plane crash from above. But spent most of the day in the 12-foot wash basin where the plane crashed in flames."

 

Where was NTSB?  12 feet above the crash on in an airplane 1000' above the crash.

It is either a 12' wash or a basin, but I can guarantee it isn't in a 12 foot wash basin.

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The north Las Vegas airport is 10 miles from the strip in Las Vegas.

[NYpeanut]

The crappy writing bothered me, too. I thought it was translated from Japanese, like a bad tech manual.

[U S Army EOD]

But if your tanks were half full of gasoline before the jp5 was put in and you weren't the one that did it or even at the aircraft when it was done you might have a problem. This guy was high up in the airport management. He and his wife were probably eating breakfast when the maintenance people fueled him. Bush field in Augusta is the main airport to the city. This is where it happened. If they hadn't gone into deep water they would have probably lived through the crash. Even though he had lost both engines on take off at 200 feet, he did maintain reasonable control of the aircraft before it hit.

The way I use to do EOD work was if you found something, I would ask you to bring it over in the light so I could look at it.

[Erik Latranyi]

Speaking of bad writing.....I can't stand the term "Fiery Crash" being used for a plane that simply went down, then burst into flames.

[U S Army EOD]

If you only understand the words crash, fly, land, and fire and are not sure how they relate to the physics of flight or an aircraft, you can write up an aircraft accident in the news media. Its done all the time.

[U S Army EOD]

Maybe thats why they can't identify the bodies??? yuk, yuk, yuk.

[Hoverbug]

LOL!! I'd ask you to come over and help me carry it!!

Even if the tanks were half full, you'd smell the difference and see the difference. A pilot should be at the aircraft to insure that fuel is pumped from the tank marked with the correct fuel, but even that is no guarantee. If the lineboy put JP into a truck marked 100 lowlead, or a delivery of the wrong type fuel was made by the supplier, you still have problems. So, you get a fuel sample from the hose BEFORE he starts pumping fuel into your aircraft.

The pilot is the final authority on an aircraft, so the buck stops with him. He carries the final responsibility.

Yep, water's a killer. Light twins can be a handful with one engine out if you don't keep up your proficiency, but with both engines out, they're very docile. They just don't climb very well. Or hold altitude for that matter.

Actually, a light twin below 12,500 lbs isn't required to show that it can hold altitude with only a single engine operative (although I haven't looked at the regs in years). On some light twins while single-engine, the best you can do is a 200 ft per minute descent.

A twin like that doubles your chance of engine failure, while increasing you choices of crash sites.

FReeGards,
Hb

[dalereed]

From an article in the SDUT this morning they had engine trouble (called tower) and attempted to return to the airport. Unless he had plenty of altitude and tried a less than standard rate turn that is one of the deadliest maneuvers that can be attempted.

I was always taught, straight ahead and try to save the passengers, to hell with the aircraft.

[U S Army EOD]

Reading the NTSB reports above, that is exactly what caused the vast majority of the crashes and fatalies. You definately don't want to come down very hard, out of control, and very steep when you have the most fuel on the aircraft unless you are fire proof.

[Publius6961]

Sounds like a classic case of overloading or failure to check proper balance to me.

[Tall_Texan]

Speaking of bad writing.....I can't stand the term "Fiery Crash" being used for a plane that simply went down, then burst into flames.

In the stereotypical canned news write-up, "fiery crash" is normally followed by "twisted wreckage" and "horrible tragedy".

[Publius6961]

How would he catch it??? He could check his guages and sound the the tanks but the wrong type of fuel would be hard to catch.

Seriously. I'm curious. How would a pilot know the difference between jet fuel and avgas? What means is there to make the distinction?

That brings up another good question. In 1983 a Canadian 767 was loaded with 23000 pounds of fuel instead of 23000 kilos of fuel. It became a 132-ton glider before it reached its destination. His fuel gauge was not working and his state-of-the-art fuel management computer said everything was fine. How was that pilot expected to verify that he had the right type of fuel and the proper weight?

[U S Army EOD]

Read the post to me by Hoverbug, but then again the guy would have to be right there when it was fueled. I read the story about the 767 incident. The pilot did a good job putting it down. That problem with his fuel is a direct example of what happens when you work in a bilingal society.

[BraveMan]

If indeed built in 1980, the aircraft is most likely the Bonanza A36.

Specifications here (PDF):
http://www.raytheonaircraft.com/beechcraft/bonanza/BonanzaA36_Spec_Perf_2003.pdf

Four adults, two children and a full fuel load would push this plane to it's very limit, if not beyond . . .

Raytheon Aircraft Company Site:
http://www.raytheonaircraft.com/beechcraft/bonanza/bonanza_a36.htm

[U S Army EOD]

Beyond would come when the engine wasn't working right. It is interesting how a string of contributing factors usually leads to an "opps".

[dighton]

Terribly written piece.

No kidding!

"Some pilots say the Beechcraft Bonanza plane is a small plane."

[southland]

RE post 30: That was what I was taught also in the 50's. Too much jet time now and fewer accidents causes people to become complacent. The problem is : It will happen eventually.
There was an air carrier recip aircraft fueled with jet fuel years ago Huntsville, Alabama. The engines were damaged but the cover up seemed to work.

[U S Army EOD]

That plane only has a 1000lb useful load??!! If you figure 200lbs per person including baggage and 100lbs per child, you can't put fuel in it. A malfuctioning engine would really mean trouble.