I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable day yesterday!
Now here are the stories to close out this week...
Have a safe weekend!
Tom
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Two people hospitalized after small plane crashes in North Sacramento
By Michael McGough
A small plane crashed Wednesday afternoon in
North Sacramento’s Robla neighborhood, critically injuring both occupants, authorities said.
The crash occurred around 12:30 p.m. in an open field near Rio Linda Boulevard and Claire Avenue. The aircraft had just departed from Rio Linda Airport, located less than half a mile from the crash site, according to the Sacramento Fire Department.
Both men were transported to Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael.
Capt. Justin Sylvia, a spokesperson for the department, said Thursday that the 70-year-old passenger went into cardiac arrest during the crash. He was revived and remained hospitalized in critical condition.
The pilot, a 40-year-old man, was also hospitalized in critical condition.
Flight data from online tracking site FlightRadar24 showed the single-engine plane, a Piper Cherokee registered to A&R Aero LLC, gained only a few hundred feet of altitude before crashing.
Sylvia said the pilot appeared to maneuver the aircraft into an open field, avoiding nearby structures. No buildings were damaged in the crash.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it had dispatched an investigator to the scene. The Federal Aviation Administration was also expected to investigate the incident.
FAA registration records listed the aircraft’s owner under an LLC with an address in the Natomas Creek neighborhood of Sacramento.
The Bee’s Daniel Hunt and Graham Womack contributed to this story.
Aeroplane crashes into house in Pauanui
By Ellen O'Dwyer – RNZ
A small aeroplane has crashed into a house in the
holiday hotspot of Pauanui, on the Coromandel Peninsula, with what a witness described as an "almighty thud".
Police said about 9:10am on Christmas Day they received reports of a small plane crashing into an unoccupied house on Harvard Court, next to Pauanui Airfield.
A Hato Hone St John spokesperson said one ambulance responded to the scene, and treated two patients.
One person was in a moderate condition and one person had minor injuries - both were sent to Thames Hospital.
Fire and Emergency shift manager Lauren Sika said a crew was in attendance on Christmas morning, and all people involved had been accounted for.
Civil Aviation confirmed it was looking into the crash, and the aircraft was a Falcomposite Furio LN-27 RG.
"Almighty thud" heard
A holidaymaker who was in Pauanui when the
crash happened told RNZ he heard an "almighty thud" as the plane crashed.
Paul Baker said he was staying at the motorhome park at the Pauanui Club, which backs onto the Pauanui airstrip, when he noticed a plane taking off on Christmas morning.
The initial take-off seemed fine, Baker said, until he heard an "almighty thud".
"I thought 'oh that doesn't sound too good'."
Hearing sirens, Baker went over to see what had happened, and saw the aircraft had slammed into the house.
The plane had rotated 180 degrees, he said, ripping through the lounge corner of the house, and the plane's engine and propeller had been torn off.
It was "absolutely lucky" no one was in the house at the time, Baker said.
"It could have been really much worse, and the plane not catching fire or anything like that is a bit of a lucky break [in] a very unfortunate incident."
Baker said it was the second time he had seen an aircraft crash in Pauanui, having once witnessed a plane take off, then crash into the estuary in the early 2000s.
The Civil Aviation Authority said it had launched an investigation into the cause of the crash.
Officials would make enquiries in the coming days to understand what happened and why, and to decide whether any further action is required.
NTSB Final Report: Luscombe 8A
The Pilot Described That The Airplane Was Climbing At A Lower Rate Than He Had Expected
Location: Hampton, New Hampshire Accident Number: ERA25LA115
Date & Time: February 11, 2025, 10:10 Local Registration: N77989
Aircraft: Luscombe 8A Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Defining Event: Loss of control in flight Injuries: 1 None
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General aviation – Personal
Analysis: After departing and completing maneuvers in the local area, the pilot was returning to the departure airport to land. According to the pilot and surveillance video of the accident flight, after the pilot aborted his initial landing attempt the airplane climbed at a low speed and high angle of attack before rejoining the traffic pattern at a low altitude.
The pilot described that the airplane was climbing at a lower rate than he had expected, and when the airplane turned from the downwind leg toward final approach, it turned and descended continuously into a prevailing right quartering tailwind. The pilot stated that, as the airplane neared the final approach to the runway, the left wing dropped and it felt like the ailerons were not responding.
The airplane then descended in a steep left wing and nose low attitude until it impacted the ground short of the runway. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures of the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. Audio recorded during the airplane’s final descent just before impact indicated that the engine was running at a constant rate with no appreciable change in sound. Additionally, a fractured aileron control cable attach bracket displayed evidence of ductile overstress separation, most
likely as a result of the airplane’s impact with trees and terrain.
While the pilot described that the airplane did not climb as he had expected during the goaround attempt, the lack of any mechanical anomalies found during the postaccident examination of the engine, the audio depicting the engine running continuously just before impact, and the lack of weather conditions conducive to the formation of carburetor icing, all implied no reason for the engine to operate with any degraded capability. However, the transition from the pilot’s initial tailwind landing attempt to a go-around as depicted by the surveillance video showed the airplane in relatively extreme bank and pitch attitudes that suggested the airplane was being operated at a low airspeed and close to an aerodynamic stall.
Further, the airplane’s loss of altitude as it turned on the final leg of the approach to the runway, the subsequent drop of the left wing described by the pilot, and the pilot’s sensation that the ailerons were not responding were all consistent with a loss of airspeed and subsequent aerodynamic stall.
Probable Cause and Findings: The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be -- The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed while maneuvering to land, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and subsequent aerodynamic stall.
FMI: www.ntsb.gov
Today in History
84 Years ago today: On 26 December 1941 An Aeroflot Tupolev G-2 crashed in Kazakhstan in icing conditions, killing 26 occupants; 8 survived the accident.
| Date: | Friday 26 December 1941 |
| Time: | |
| Type: | Tupolev G-2 |
| Owner/operator: | Aeroflot, Kazakstan Civil Aviation Directorate |
| Registration: | CCCP-L3043 |
| MSN: | 22182 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 2150 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 26 / Occupants: 34 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed, written off |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | 6 km NW of Dmitriyevka - Kazakhstan |
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Passenger |
| Departure airport: | Alma-Ata Airport (ALA/UAAA) |
| Destination airport: | Karaganda Airport (KGF/UAKK) |
Narrative:
An Aeroflot Tupolev G-2 crashed in Kazakhstan in icing conditions, killing 26 occupants; 8 survived the accident.
The aircraft operated on a flight from Alma-Ata to Kazan with an en route stop at Karaganda. On board were high-ranking party and state officials of Kazakhstan on. After takeoff the aircraft entered low clouds and fog with turbulence. Severe icing caused the pilot to return to Alma-Ata, but the aircraft lost height while flying a steep left turn at a height of some 100-150 metres. About 6 km north-west of Dmitriyevka (now Baiserke), the left wing touched the ground and the aircraft crashed, caught fire and burnt out.
