Posted on 12/27/2003 9:05:15 PM PST by 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.
NTSB -- Dec 2003 Aviation Accidents
Prior to this incident, 39 people have died in crashes of US registered aircraft in December. 57 were lost in November.
They might try, but I doubt they'd be successful. It's the pilot's responsibility to see that the aircraft has the proper amount of the proper fuel for the flight.
Hb
College educated, affirmative actioned touchy-feelies who became "journalists" to "change the world", I'm sure.
Geez, disgraceful and haphazard writing.
I'm so happy I turned off the networks and the local stations they broadcast on over 10 years ago!
Mr. Atomic Vomit
I went to the tv station's site to see who wrote such poor copy and, guess what............
......"news reporter" Cindy Cesare was the name on the byline. Whoever she is.
Affirmative action raises it's ugly head once more.
Gotta wonder where the editor was.
Mr. Atomic Vomit
To hijack an Air France to hit Las Vegas, it would have to divert from 30,000+ feet in altitude. This manuver would be detected immediately and the birds at Nellis AFB would splatter that plane in the desert before it got close to Vegas. This would have been the senario as the suspected flight was not going to Vegas, but rather going to L.A.
The small aircraft in this article was not using the airport next to the Vegas strip.
FYI - Nellis is a training base. The last operational fighter wing left years ago - 474th.
But I did hear jets in the pattern Christmas day. I say "hear" because it was raining most of the day.
Just so happens that a lot of the training is for pilots that have serious "stick" time already. So, in a pinch, I guess these guys could probably handle most anything - should the need arise.
LVM
LVM
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