Roush Blames Crash On Landing ‘Conflict’ (Corrected)

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Click for more photos of Roush’s Beech

NASCAR racing legend Jack Roush appears to blame air traffic controllers working EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh for the events that led to the crash landing of his Beech Premier jet on July 27. “The reality of it — on a trip arrival into Oshkosh, Wisc., I was put in conflict with the flight plan of another airplane close to the ground, and I was unable to address the conflict and keep the airplane flying. I ground-looped the airplane…” Roush told the car racing publication Motorsports. In tower recordings we’re told it’s Roush who appears to question tower instructions “Is 6JR (Roush’s plane) going to be OK with this?” Roush asks. “Affirmative,” says the controller working Roush’s aircraft. “Don’t think so,” says Roush. Seconds later the controller begins ordering traffic on final to go around. The NTSB has issued its preliminary report and says, based on amateur video it has seen, Roush apparently overshot the centerline of the runway and made several course corrections.

“The airplane appeared to overshoot the runway centerline during this turn and then level its wings momentarily before entering a slight right bank simultaneously as the nose of the airplane pitched up,” the report says. “The airplane then turned left toward the runway centerline and began a descent. During this descent the airplane’s pitch appeared to increase until the airplane entered a right bank and struck the grass area west of the runway in a nose down, right wing low attitude.” The aircraft had a cockpit voice recorder and it’s being analyzed. Meanwhile, Roush is out of the hospital after two weeks of surgeries and treatments for severe facial injuries. He lost the sight in his left eye in the accident and suffered multiple broken bones, including a broken jaw. Roush, who survived a previous plane crash, told Motorsport he’s counting his blessings. “I feel very lucky,” Roush said. “I’ve had several bites at the apple.”

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