AVweb’sGeneral Aviation Accident Bulletinis taken from the pages of our sister publication,Aviation Safetymagazine, and is published twice a month. All the reports listed here are preliminary and include only initial factual findings about crashes. You can learn more about the final probable cause in the NTSB’s website atwww.ntsb.gov. Final reports appear about a year after the accident, although some take longer. Find out more aboutAviation Safetyatwww.aviationsafetymagazine.com.
April 16, 2018, Warsaw, Ohio
Beech G33 Bonanza
The airplane impacted terrain at about 0630 Eastern time. The commercial pilot and passenger were both fatally injured; the air-plane was substantially damaged. Instrument conditions prevailed; the flight operated on an IFR flight plan. While in cruise flight, the pilot requested a descent after encountering icing conditions. The airplane’s descent continued and then it dropped off radar. The airplane impacted a lightly wooded area and came to rest upright. A post-crash fire ensued.
April 17, 2018, Philadelphia, Penn.
Boeing 737-7H4
At 1103 Eastern time, the airplane experienced a catastrophic failure of its left engine, a CFM International CFM-56-7B. The engine inlet and cowling were damaged and fragments struck the wing and fuselage, resulting in a rapid depressurization after a window failed. The flight crew conducted an emergency descent and divert-ed. Of the 144 passengers and five crewmembers aboard, one passenger was fatally injured and eight passengers received minor injuries. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The aircraft was operated by Southwest Airlines as a Part 121 scheduled passenger flight.
April 19, 2018, Williamsburg, Penn.
Cirrus Design SR22
The airplane impacted terrain at 0843 Eastern time. The private pilot and one passenger were fatally injured; the airplane was destroyed, and a post-impact fire consumed most of the wreckage. Instrument conditions prevailed; the flight operated on an IFR flight plan.
At 0828, while en route at 6,000 feet MSL, the pilot requested to divert to a nearby airport due to ice accumulation on the airplane. The controller cleared the flight to 4,500 feet, the lowest altitude available in the area. At 0842, ATC advised the flight had passed through the localizer for the ILS approach; the pilot requested radar vectors to reintercept the localizer. At 0843, radar contact was lost. The airplane impacted a field 9.5 miles from the divert airport. The pilot’s weather briefing included active Airmets for moderate icing, IFR/mountain obscuration and low-level turbulence.
April 20, 2018, Clewiston, Fla.
Piper PA-34-220T Seneca III/IV/V
At about 1700 Eastern time, the airplane sustained substantial damage when it impacted a taxi-way following a loss of directional control during takeoff. The airline transport pilot and three passengers were not injured. Visual conditions prevailed.
After landing on Runway 31, the pilot set the flaps and advanced both throttles to takeoff power for a touch-and-go. Shortly after, he felt the airplane yaw to the right, observed an over-boost indicator light for the right engine and lost control of the rudder/steering as the airplane exited the runway. The pilot regained control, reduced both engines to idle and attempted to stop the airplane. It struck the edge of a taxiway perpendicular to the airplane’s direction of travel and became airborne before landing on the opposite side of the taxiway. All three landing gear collapsed; the airplane came to rest upright.
April 23, 2018, Andover, N.J.
Bellanca 7GCBC
The airplane was substantially damaged at about 1550 Eastern time after it lost engine power. The solo airline transport pilot lost control and the airplane impacted water. The pilot was seriously injured. Visual conditions prevailed.
According to a witness who observed the entire accident sequence, after making the first takeoff and experiencing a loss of engine power on initial climb, the pilot made a 180-degree turn, returned to the airport and landed. After troubleshooting and maintenance, the engine was run at various power settings with no anomalies noted. During initial climb after takeoff, the airplane appeared to stall after experiencing a loss of engine power, followed by the left wing dropping. The pilot recovered the airplane to a wings-level attitude, but it impacted water in a flat, “belly-flop” attitude.
This article originally appeared in the July 2018 issue ofAviation Safetymagazine.
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