Posted on 10/06/2006 1:25:44 PM PDT by PDR
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe and an aide escaped injury Thursday when the small plane the Oklahoma Republican was flying spun out of control after landing at Tulsa's Jones Riverside Airport.
"No scrapes or bruises. No nicks or cuts. No injuries at all," said Danny Finnerty, Inhofe's long-time aide, who was sitting behind the senator in the two-seat aircraft.
"We walked away from the plane."
Finnerty, reached by telephone, said they landed about 8 p.m. and that the plane had slowed down to about taxi speed.
"Everything was fine until the tail wheel hit the runway," he said.
"Jim felt like his rudder control was not what it should have been, so it was mechanical, certainly. As soon as we hit, we fish-tailed and spun around a couple of times. "
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the RV-8 single-engine aircraft "ground-looped," or went out of control, upon landing.
Finnerty said the plane, which he described as an experimental model rated for aerobatics, suffered significant damage.
"The plane looks a lot worse than it was," he said.
Finnerty said the plane, which he described as a "tail dragger," was built for the senator by a
professional a few years ago.
The RV-8 aircraft is known as a "kit-plane." Such planes' manufacturers provide a kit from which to build the aircraft from the ground up, according to the manufacturer, Van's Aircraft.
Inhofe, 71, is a veteran pilot who owns several planes.
Finnerty said the senator was returning from Duncan after a day of campaigning for candidates running for state legislative seats. Earlier in the day, he said, Inhofe had flown to Guthrie and then made several stops by car before flying on to Duncan.
Finnerty said no problems appeared during the flight.
"It was an absolutely perfect flight from Duncan," he said. "The landing was perfectly normal, and then that happened."
Finnerty was unsure whether the National Transportation Safety Board would have to investigate.
"I am certain the FAA will come out and take a look at the plane," he said, adding that the plane was left on the runway until permission was given to move it.
Inhofe did not comment on the incident.
The senator was forced to make an emergency landing in 1999 at the Claremore Municipal Airport after the propeller fell off the Grumman American AA-5B he was flying.
The NTSB investigated that incident, and its report blamed an error on the prop installation.
Inhofe, who was flying alone that day, also escaped that incident without injury.
His plane was cruising at 2,500 feet when it lost the entire propeller assembly.
After the plane began to porpoise, Inhofe made a forced landing on a grassy section between a runway and a taxiway.
Not sure why he wasn't able to glide to a crash landing. Unless he was so distracted that he forgot to fly the aircraft...<<<<<<<<<
Reminds me of what a local FAA official used to remind the area pilots..."Never drop the airplane in order to fly the microphone". Best advice I ever got, it applies to all sorts of situations in life.
I think Inhofe's a helluva pilot. He managed to get his Tiger down safely after losing the prop. That, aside from losing the wings or tail, is my personal aviation nightmare.
I had a BIG fun flight in an RV-4 - the pilot is a skilled aerobatic pilot, and we had a blast. The -6 is a terrific plane, and Van is about the best experimental designer out there.
A ground loop is just a precautionary 360-degree scan of the airport. :-)
I believe John Denver lost control over water - off Santa Maria, CA, IIRC. The plane had just gotten out of the paint shop.
BTTT
I know for a fact that the Soros Shadow Party (“SSP”) will launch a major National priority defeat initiative in 2008 against Jim’s reelection bid. This includes funneling significant contributions to his Democratic opponent. I'm a compensated SSP expert and my GOP group tracks their activities very closely. One of the dirtiest elections I/we have witnessed was Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK) 2004 U.S. Senate race. The seat became available when Don Nickles retired and the GOP “powers” wanted Tom to run for it. His Democratic opponent was Brad Carson, a sitting U.S. House Representative and Cherokee Nation tribal member. Carson also had significant Bureau of Indian Affairs connections that the Democrats-SSP wanted to exploit after he won the election. The SSP rolled significant money and outside resources into Carson's campaign. They ran some of the dirties total BS attack ads against Coburn I/we have read or watched. The only reason I knew about this Senate race is that it came up on our radar because of major SSP involvement. Luckily, two SSP major Oklahoma resources they utilized in 2004 are now in Federal prison after a significant FBI investigation. The SSP will do everything in their power to destroy Inhofe in his reelection bid. Obviously, Jim’s campaign will require major money and resources for him to be reelected. He has proven to be an outstanding and reliable National warrior for the GOP and conservative movement. His 2008 U.S. Senate race cannot be lost. – FlA
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