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by Jim Timm

 

The following are the reports of aviation accidents and incidents that have occurred in Arizona from March through late April. We hope to use the following detailed accident information to develop safety programs, briefings, and posters/flyers that would help pilots learn from the mistakes being made by others and take the action necessary to prevent them from having similar accidents.

This reporting period, aviation safety is not really the greatest because of the number of accidents reported and at the very end of the reporting period there was a fatal accident, claiming the life of the pilot. I would like to hope pilots would fly more carefully and get the number of accidents/incidents and incidents down.

In continuing with the expanded scope of the report, using information from the ASN, FAA, NTSB, and APA members, I hope this more all-inclusive information better suits our purposes of trying to get an idea of what is happening out there, so we can use this information to help make flying safer.

In the meantime, here are the results from the ASN, NTSB, APA Members, and FAA notes.

 

2022 april accident and incident summary drexel heights fire department

Date: March 30, 2022

Info. Source: ASN, FAA

Location: Tucson (RYN)

Type: Cozy Mark IV

Injuries: 1 Minor Injury

POWER LOSS ON LANDING

The pilot suffered minor injuries when the plane he was flying crashed at Ryan Field when the engine failed while the pilot was turning onto final to land. Fire crews found the single engine plane in a desert area near the runway at Ryan Field. They said the pilot was able to free himself from the wreckage. The pilot received minor injuries, and the airplane was substantially damaged.

 

 

Date: April 3, 2022

Info. Source: FAA

Location: Eloy (E60)

Type: DHC-6 Twin Otter

Injuries: See Notes

HARD LANDING

In this incident report from the FAA, the parachutist fatality was a result of injuries sustained from a hard landing. No aircraft damage was noted. The report also noted: “Parachute fatality is an ‘incident’ by definition if the aircraft had no role.”

 

 

Date: April 4, 2022

Info. Source: FAA

Location: Maricopa (A39)

Type: Piper PA28-160

Injuries: 2 Uninjured

ROUGH RUNNING ENGINE

The Piper declared an emergency due to a rough running engine, and the aircraft made a safe landing at A39. There were no injuries or aircraft damage. 

 

 

Date: April 6, 2022

Info. Source: FAA

Location: Mesa (FFZ)

Type: Piper PA24-260 Comanche

Injuries: 2 Uninjured

GEAR UP LANDING

The aircraft was NORDO, and after landing, the pilot reported that an electrical failure inbound to runway 4L at Falcon Field required a gear up landing. The aircraft performed several go-arounds prior to landing gear up.

 

 

Date: April 6, 2022

Info. Source: FAA

Location: Phoenix (IWA)

Type: Robinson R22 Beta

Injuries: 1 Uninjured

LOSS OF CONTROL LANDING

The student pilot rolled the helicopter over during the landing on taxiway C, between C2 & C3. While there was no pilot injury, the helicopter was substantially damaged.

 

 

Date: April 6, 2022

Info. Source: FAA, NTSB

Location: Tucson (RYN) 

Type: Cessna 172N

Injuries: 2 Uninjured

LOSS OF CONTROL LANDING

The aircraft landed on RWY 33 and veered to the left, and off the runway into a ditch, and flipped over. The NTSB assessment of the damage was that the damage was substantial.

 

 

Date: April 10, 2022

Info. Source: FAA

Location: Safford 

Type: Balloon - A55S

Injuries: 3 Uninjured

INFLIGHT ENGINE FAILURE

The balloon departed Lafe Nelson Elementary School in Safford for an approximate one-hour flight with a “planned” landing in a field near Thatcher. About 20-30 minutes into the flight the pilot reported a loss of power to both burners, as a “Low Pressure Failure.” The burner pilot lights remained lit, and the pilot tried to glide over the power lines, but the balloon cables struck the power lines, causing one cable to break. The envelope of the balloon partially covered the power lines. The city of Thatcher Power Company cleared the power lines, and no ground damage was reported.

 

 

Date: April 15, 2022

Info. Source: ASN 

Location: Gila Bend (E63)

Type: Robinson R22

Injuries: 1 Fatal

LOSS OF CONTROL LANDING

The Robinson R22 crashed short of the runway at Gila Bend Municipal Airport. The sole pilot onboard was fatally injured. The FAA and NTSB are investigating the cause of the crash.

 

 

Date: April 17, 2022

Info. Source: ASN, NTSB 

Location: Phoenix (DVT)

Type: Eurocopter AS 350B3

Injuries: 1 Serious Injury

GROUND HANDLING ISSUE, NOT INFLIGHT

The helicopter had departed from Phoenix Children’s Hospital Heliport with a destination of Phoenix Deer Valley airport. The helicopter had landed for hot refueling, and while the FBO attendant was pulling the grounding cable from the fuel truck, the cable was struck by the main rotor. One person sustained serious injuries as a result.

 

 

2022 april accident and incident summary eloy cessna red bull midair plane swap

Date: April 24, 2022

Info. Source: ASN, NTSB 

Location: Eloy

Type: Cessna 182G

Injuries: 1 Uninjured

RED BULL - MIDAIR PLANE SWAP

Per the ASN, An experimental Cessna 182G Skylane, N3694U, was destroyed when it was involved in an "airshow" accident near Eloy, Arizona. The sole pilot onboard was not injured.

The aircraft was part of the Red Bull Plane Swap and unmanned at the time, the aircraft entered an inverted spin and impacted desert terrain. The pilot had jumped out prior to the sequence and entered another aircraft involved in the demonstration, in which he landed safely. The pilot of the other aircraft had jumped out prior to the sequence and parachuted down to the ground safely.

The FAA had Denied the request for an exemption to § 91.105(a) [Flight crew members at stations] for this "stunt" on 04/22/2022.

Only data provided by the NTSB was information containing Date, Location, Aircraft, and stated damage was substantial to one aircraft.

At 14,000 feet, the plane engines were stopped as custom-made airbrakes "held the planes in a controlled descent" at 140 mph. During the descent, each pilot was to eject and skydive into the other's plane, gaining control before landing safely. The plan was for all of it to happen in about 40 seconds. Only one of the pilots made the transfer successfully, while the other made a safe parachute landing. A video of the “stunt” is available on the following website.

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/04/24/plane-swap-stunt-unsuccessful-arizona/7434361001/

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