By Fred Gibbs
November 2022 is here, and according to the NTSB CAROL report, there have been no new fatal accidents during the month of October here in Arizona, a good sign. However, 2022 has not been a good year – it has been an above average year with regard to fatal accidents. The count currently stands at 7 in-state fatal accidents and one out-of-state Arizona-based pilot fatality. A summary of the accidents to date is included below.
The first accident was a Van’s RV-7A that crashed under unknown circumstances near the Triangle Airpark (AZ50), White Hills, Mohave County, Arizona. The second accident was the Robison R22 helicopter that crashed short of the runway at Gila Bend Municipal Airport. The third crash was an experimental plane, a Covie Quickie, near Gila Bend Municipal Airport. The fourth accident, in Buckeye, was a Bonanza that crashed in the desert northwest of the airport. The fifth accident was a Cessna C-172, substantially damaged in an accident near Show Low, Arizona. The sixth was the C207 that crashed in Lake Powell with a load of passengers, and the 7th, a Piper PA-46 operating under questionable circumstances, occurred in mid-September, out north of Seligman. It simply dropped off the radar and was later found by a search and rescue helicopter. The two occupants were killed in the crash, with the circumstances unknown at this time. The report also includes the fatal accident in California involving a Mooney Rocket flown by an Arizona-based pilot. The airplane crashed in a field shortly after takeoff when the plane struck a building after taking off from the Camarillo Airport on his return trip back home to the Phoenix area.
FOR INFORMATION ON ALL ACCIDENTS/INCIDENTS THAT OCCURRED LAST MONTH, REFER TO JIM TIMM’S ACCIDENT SUMMARY HEREIN.