Twin Cessna inflight break up due to severe turbulence! fatality-5 (archive)
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 1 янв 2025
- Date: Wednesday 8 July 2009
Time: 14:52
Cessna 421C
Registration: N4467D
Fatalities: Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 5
Other fatalities: 0
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Category: Accident
Location: Gulf of Mexico,20 miles W of Port Richey
Narrative:
Prior to the accident flight, the pilot indicated that he was aware of the thunderstorm activity along his route of flight and that he anticipated deviating around the weather as necessary. While enroute to his destination, the pilot requested and was provided both weather information and pilot reports from other aircraft by air traffic control (ATC). Upon encountering an area of thunderstorm activity that extended east-to-west across the route of flight, the pilot reported encountering significant turbulence, and then downdrafts of 2,000 feet per minute. He then requested a course reversal to exit the weather before he declared an emergency and advised ATC that the airplane was upside down. There were no further transmissions from the pilot and radar contact with the airplane was lost. Review of radar data revealed that the pilot had deviated south and then southwest when the airplane entered a strong and intense echo of extreme intensity. Visible imaging revealed that the echo was located in an area of a rapidly developing cumulonimbus cloud with a defined overshooting top, indicating the storm was in the mature stage or at its maximum intensity. Two debris fields were later discovered near the area where the cumulonimbus cloud had been observed. This was indicative that the airplane had penetrated the main core of the cumulonimbus cloud, which resulted in an inflight breakup of the airplane. Near the heavier echoes the airplane's airborne weather radar may have been unable to provide an accurate representation of the radar echoes along the aircraft's flight path; therefore the final penetration of the intense portion of the storm was likely unintentional.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s decision to operate into a known area of adverse weather, which resulted in the inadvertent penetration of a severe thunderstorm, a subsequent loss of control, and in-flight breakup of the airplane.If you like our contents please SUBSCRIBE to our channel
/ @flight_follower
The ATC audio is downloaded from Liveatc.net
Email us at
notify.flightfollower@gmail.com
The green takes the dirt off, the yellow takes the bugs off, the red takes the wings off. Act accordingly.
good description
Very well stated
Colorado red is different than Florida red
Flew for 30+ years and have never heard that!
Had to go through some solid red last year in Atlanta, had nowhere else to go, in a Westwind. (Solid airplane to do it in). We buckled up, made sure everything was secure, and got ready. Wasn’t even a nibble the entire way through, just a ton of water. You never know, though!
Sounded like the controller was being taken out of the sector at the end. It's a terrible feeling having a pilot crash. I feel for the guy and the pilot. I had a C208 ice up and crash during the midnight shift. I asked him several times if he wanted to return to his departure city to avoid the icing....he said he was fine until he wasn't. Tried to get him into a small airport in IFR conditions but he didn't make it. I still think of that guy 20 years later and can hear his voice. Hearing this brought up bad memories. I used to see so many small cargo planes fly into such bad weather. You would provide them the weather and so many would just say "roger" and fly right through it.
Yeah. The controller will be relieved as soon as practicable after an incident like this.
Yeah, the controller's day is ruined, he gets sent to the break room for the rest of his shift. He will likely be held over for drug and alcohol testing too, as it involved a fatal crash.
@@northmaineguy5896 Mine happened on a midnight shift. I never had to stay for drug testing. They called quality assurance in and they pulled all of the tapes and flight data and had me fill out a report. At the end of the shift they just said to go home. The NTSB produced a 20+ page report on the accident.
The worst part I think is having all that happen in your ear, give radar contact lost, meanwhile the rest of the room is joking around and business as usual. You give the info to your supe, he says "ok" and forwards it on, and that's it -- you write a little statement, go on break then back to work. Next day you see a little news article "family of 4 killed in plane crash" and think "Well, shit."
Thanks for sharing
Many years ago I was the radar operator on a US Navy P-3 and were over the Pacific. The weather was hell and we were on our way to Tahiti. I had spent the last 4-5 hours picking our way thru convective systems that were huge and closing in on our path.
Finally everything closed in and there was no way forward without hitting severe weather. It was during the nite so the light show was incredible. I told my pilots it was going to get very ugly and they asked my recommendation. I said do a 180 back about 250 miles and we’d go around as best as possible.
There was no questions or arguing, the pilot did a 180. We’d flown together for a few years and he knew I was a good operator.
After that the flight was easy although we did land in Papeete with minimum fuel.
thanks for sharing the experience , sir!
Thanks for sharing your story of dealing with horrible weather. These videos come to us because there is a small percentage of pilots that don't have good decision making skills. Unfortunately, these are the ones who die and that's why this video exists.
Good call. Also surprised the p3 couldn’t climb over the storm or was it extremely high altitude storm?
@@jonasbaine3538 the P-3 doesn’t climb much beyond 28-30’ feet. My highest altitude was 31’ and it was difficult to breath. Engine driven compressors don’t pressurize the aircraft very well. At 31’ the pilots and engineer are on O2 masks. We limited physical exertion. That flight my fingernail beds were blue from low O2. Great times!
My buddy flew the Orion back in the 70’s. Then delta until retirement. He loved that plane, always spoke about how well built the airframe was.
GA is like boating the most important lesson one has to learn is when not to go. Delaying or canceling your flight doesn’t make any less of a pilot. Quite the opposite it makes you a good pilot.
Amen brother.
Say it loud
Grew up in south Florida.
Sailing, fishing, surfing, scuba diving
Love.❤
But the weather can change in minutes,
Especially in the spring and summer.
Make sure your immediate actions and CPR skills are current
You might be the only thing between disaster and survival.
Watch the weather like our life depends on it
Please ❤
I only fly in good vfr. In part because it makes my wife feel safer ( and it is ). You can fly and die or land and live. The choice isn’t that hard for me
My Dad sailed the ocean on his own Pearson 28 for 4 years, living on the thing, and one of his brothers, my Uncle was flight instruct in the US Air Force and they both told me the exact thing you are writing.
So sad. The fear in his voice, the compassion in the other pilots’ and controllers’ - very moving. If only flying was always safe. Rip.
I mean, as a pilot, I would never ever fly into a system like this. He took an insane risk, for no reason. You can make it safe with safe descision making.
Controller is warning him several times about the extreme precip, and can't tell him to deviate left but is letting him know that is open
Ok Captain Hindsight. Cheers
@@DerekThomson-lp7sg me? It’s called foresight, it wasn’t some unknown issue
@@DerekThomson-lp7sg No, not hindsight. Practical knowledge. In 26 years of flying I have never gone into the magenta and purple. Just no good reason to do it.
One of the first things they taught us in flight school was “a thunderstorm is an airplane disassembly factory” and that has stuck with me ever since. It’s sad that so many pilot ignore that warning and pay the ultimate price. 😢
Making decisions like this will cause these pilots to have a short life expentancy...they weren't going to live long anyway.
Boy…that was not easy to listen to. The terror in his voice. Heart wrenching. Rest easy
I was flying home to GRR years ago from a business trip thru ORD. Normal routing for me if flying AA or UA. Bad winter storm, also normal. We were sitting at gate, waiting for plane to come in, delayed of course. An American Eagle flight home. Noticed the pilot as well sitting and waiting, older guy. Another passenger sat beside him talking as we waited. I was surprised when we were actually told that flight was going to take off and we were set up to board. I’d expected an overnight stay.
It was a rough take off and the most turbulent flight I’d ever had over the Big Lake. The man across the aisle from me was the man who’d been talking to the pilot in gate area earlier. It was rough, up and down, side to side. I’m a multi million mile flier of over 30+ years of business travel, 59 countries. Flying is my commute and one of my deepest loves. But I seriously thought that white knuckle flight was the end. Everyone did. The man across the aisle looked at me and said, we are going to make it. That pilot is a decorated Vietnam vet close to retiring and has nerves of steel. This is a piece of cake for him, no matter how horrible it feels to us.
I instantly felt better. And we made it, obviously.
Everyone cheered at landing and thanked him at door upon exiting. The next day I was flying out again and of course, it canceled.
We sadly lost some of the greatest pilots ever when Vietnam vet pilots retired at the required ages. Nerves of steel. Talented beyond belief. Yes, weather always wins when it’s destined to as we are all subject to natures powers. But I miss those strong men and women.
Every generation has talented pilots, in large part because of the great flight instruction that comes out of the previous generations. The pilot was likely very seasoned, and fortunately for the rest of us, he no doubt passed on valuable learnings to other captains and first officers along the way.
Women?😅
79 D opted for thunderstorm dangers over a decision to turn left near Mississippi/Alabama southerly over water to the same longitude and a left turn straight over to Tampa. The 421 Golden Eagle is a fine, capable aircraft. He almost made it, but most likely in IMC, he plunged into one of the most intensely active cells in the widespread foul weather system. Picking directly through thunderstorm activity is a risky business at best. Seemingly out of control, the plane being tossed about like a leaf in a gale, the pilot often tries to remain in control with full stop control imputs. This added stress could very well tear the plane apart. One of the best safety mechanisms in a pilots handbag is a credit card. Could of landed in Pensacola, enjoyed the beach, and had a crazy good fresh flounder for dinner as that strom ran itself out.
@@planetalk1662once you get into an unusual attitude that will be impossible to maintain maneuvering speed
@@planetalk1662maneuvering speed is not magic either there are velocities of updrafts and downdrafts that will tear play playing a part even below maneuvering speed
@@planetalk1662 interesting work you did, I've always wanted to ask someone that flew these did you notice different flight characteristics from the cloud seeding flares?
Don’t turn! Keep going straight ahead. It’s nearly always the right way out. Keep the wings level and fly attitude not altitude. Take the altitude excursions and just keep it the right side up.
Or sit on the ground and wait it out. This line of storms did not just pop up. It had probably been moving across the gulf for days.
Exactly this. More often than not it's the overstress that comes from the attempted 180 in severe turbulence. Wings level, turbulence penetration airspeed, and accept altitude deviations. Yes, avoidance is always best... But flying night freight in a Shorts with a shitty radar and no autopilot, sometimes you end up penetrating. Glad I don't do that anymore. Fate is the Hunter.
Straight ahead is always the best way out unless you are flying through volcanic ash
The controller doing his job advising his relief while he was probably super stressed just goes to show professionalism, situational awareness and just plain grit. Well done. RIP to those lost in this accident.
The more sophisticated (expensive) airborne wx radars show where _attenuation_ is blocking the view of more weather. More than a few pilots have crashed because they thought those areas were empty and safe, only to find extremely violent turbulence, rain, and hail.
421 definitely does not have that, and even the ones that do, it often doesn’t depict the attenuated area until you get within 20-40 miles.
WHY He flew right into a Thunderstorm is anyone's Guess. EASY to play Armchair Pilot
Get there itis
read the text at 6:54
At the beginning, the Pilot‘s voice sounds confident and routined. Perhaps he was a little too confident and routined...
My thoughts exactly.
Old flying proverb...
It's better to be down here wishing you were up there, than up there wishing you were down here!
Do you live under your bed?
Looking at that radar and seeing him fly into it is just insane
The old radar systems got many killed, as it would show a hole on on the radar, that actually was the most intense part of the storm, even happen to a few airliners, notably Southern Airways 242. R.I.P.
What the hell was he thinking trying to snake his way through that. Just awful that he tried it.
Probably did it dozens of times before. His luck ran out.
The pilot DID intentionally fly into a severe thunderstorm. Bad decision.
Hearing him brief the next guy in great detail and with dedication to his work was impressive.
didn’t lose his composure at all
I was thinking the same thing. His voice and composure didn't change at all, except when he interrupted someone to say "Let me talk." It's almost as if this stuff happens every day.
Having flown many times in Florida in a 737, there can be some very big thunderstorms that will take down any plane. I piloted C-421's and while its the best piston twin to fly, its not the platform for thunderstorms. Most radar equipment in planes are not the most up to date equipment, and have a very small radar antenna. Antenna size matters for get the most accurate display. Getting a full picture of the weather ahead is related to the size of the antenna, and you ability to scan long distances, and scan the height of the storm. Light twins just don't have the radar capacity. Avoid tunderstorms, or stay on the ground.
i hope the young pilots watch these vids and comments and learn from others mistakes
Radar isn’t made to “pick your way through” anything. It’s made to avoid areas of significant weather, period.
Amen brother. Everytime I hear people doing this I cringe
yeah if you read the text at the end of the video - they said it likely was not visible on the pilots radar so he likely was seeing something different and thought there was a slot. (there wasnt)
yeah---also I've seen involved "dive and drive" to get below the cumulonimbus
@ pretty sure I don’t want below any lifting action
As someone who just flew some moderate turbulence in a Piper Seneca II, this was the fear I had the whole time we were in the storm, and it wasn't remotely as bad as what they were flying through. I feel so sad for the family of this crew, as well as the Controller who had to continue to do his job after losing someone on his screen.
We’re upside down, hurry!………yeah, like what you want us to do!!?
You know its bad when the pilot says "hurry", something he would otherwise know is not possible.
_Many_ years ago, my father was a pilot in the USAF's "Operation Thunderstorm", a program designed to find the best way to fly through a thunderstorm. Their conclusion: DON'T! I don't think the Air Force has subsequently changed their minds.
Sad, I didn't know a storm could break a plane in half like that, crazy
Mother Nature always wins !!
Oh yes, it can!
@@holywells …except in cases of properly built tornado shelters.
The question is, did the actual turbulence cause structural failure or, did pilot control input? It's usually the latter. But, this method of operation AKA "follow the leader" is common in aviation. Once the leader goes down, the followers go elsewhere as we see. I don't think ANY of these aircraft should have been flying through this embedded weather at those altitudes to begin with.
It's the equivalent of driving over speed bumps at 90 mph
It's hard to read these sometimes, but it can be a teachable moment. A 421 Cessna is a very strong airplane. However, everything has it's limits. At the altitude that night they knew and felt their demise. RIP everyone. 🙏🇺🇸
Flight follower, Thanks for another excellent ATC video! I noticed the DARBS waypoint was mentioned multiple times but it is not shown on your overlay. It would be really helpful for all your viewers if we could understand where darbs is located in relation to the target aircraft and its destination airport. Thanks!
thank you sir we will keep it in mind next time
I fly a C414A, very capable aircraft, but severe weather and icing need to be treated with respect, caution, and avoidance. There was no reason to fly into that weather. Not sure what his weather avoidance equipment was, but when searching for my C414 I did not even look at those planes with only ADS-B and or SIRIUSXM weather. Airborne radar is a must for closer in avoidance if you get caught. Weather changes rapidly. Very sad.
Attempting to turn back is generally the worst thing you can do once fully within the storm.. It slows you down meaning that you'll be in the storm for longer, it requires the pilot to bank the aircraft and hold steady, ...far better to maintain wings level, forget about maintaining altitude, don't fight it, speed at or below penetration speed and sit it out. Better still.. avoid the weather.. easiest way to do that in Florida is fly early morning.
Too deep, too late for turning back now. You navigate around the storms, better to arrive late than never at all.
I feel for controllers who have to deal with something like this.
I never thought of that.
Maybe his wife is doing the infamous ", life insurance celebration dance"
That little boy, tho
Ho
A check of weather before leaving and I would never fly into a rare signal like this one. Wait 2 hours and live
From the video, looks like he was almost out of it. Turning around was crazy. You have to go right back through it again.
I was working at st Pete afss that day, I would not have flown a 747 through those storms. Don't mess with Florida thunderstorms.
Moderate to extreme precipitation? May others learn and be aware.
Trust the weather radar to tell you there is a hazard. Never trust the weather radar to show you a path through bad weather. Get on the ground and wait for that mess to dissipate,
He was so close to being through it. I'm very sorry.
Not even commercial Aircraft would fly thru that what makes him think he could do it
Precipitation isn't the problem, it's the convection, don't f*ck with convection.
TKI is Collin County Airport, McKinney TX.
TKI is the IATA code for Tokeen Seaplane Base (FAA LID: 57A) which is probably the confusion. McKinney doesn’t have an IATA code.
Was he using one of those iPad weather apps with delayed data?
Why does this keep happening?? I’ve been flying for over 35 years. Two things you don’t mess with: icing and thunderstorms. Case closed. With today’s in cockpit weather there is no excuse for this type of accident. Furthermore, what do you expect ATC to do to help you when you’re upside down?? I wouldn’t have flown into that weather system depicted in the video in a jet let alone a twin Cessna.
Because you're smart and don't take crazy chances. Fly safe!
This happened in 2009.
If you been flying for 35 years, it's not all that simple. Several Southwest and other equipment were also airborne. then there is the question of pilot proficiency in operating the aircraft. Flights could be 12 plus hours long, Forecasting is not an exact science, Flying over water leaves you with less options, Turning around can be a direction that includes developing thunderstorms, what is behind you can be a worse option, Icing forecast is also not exact, pireps if available is good information. its not all black and white dealing with weather, equipment is better now but it's still a judgement and avoidance game even when you are enroute.
Thanks!
appreciate it!
That was heartbreaking. 😭 Bless their lives. ❤
RIP
It's frustrating to see this still happening. We have the technology and knowledge but still not the wisdom and patience...
I’m close to retirement, but, my private pilot instructor told me 30+ years ago never turn around. If you’re in it, it’s better to continue straight… That 180° turn might’ve been his undoing.
I wonder if people realize that their life insurance will usually NOT cover you when you are flying on any 'non-scheduled' flights. That includes private and corporate aircraft. Just adds to the loss for the families of the victims.
There are policies that include it!
@@gavinsingh4450 Absolutely, you can find a few carriers that offer it for an extra cost and a stack of stipulations, one of which deals with 'pilot incompetence'.
Thats not necessarily true. Mine covers flying in private aircraft. But a good thing to take note on. Thanks!
I don’t know, from a non-pilots pov it seems it would be better to not drive into this weather at all, especially in a small plane, correct? Lots of reds on that radar. It’s like if they’re calling for a blizzard in Wyoming and I need to drive across the state, I’ll simply wait. Better than landing in a ditch or a pileup
Yes they waited until 6:54 ish to put text on the screen which explains the pilot likely did not see the full picture on his onboard weather radar
Wonder why the controller deviated him to the left (into the red zone) instead of right, where it was lighter?
Maybe that’s why he was so distressed?
He was literally seconds away from exiting the heavy precip.
Dayum.
"Hurry! Bring the right-side-upper!"
Man the only way he could process that loss was to keep doing his job as professional as he could. Atc are my coworkers every day in the sky. Always have our backs. Godspeed golden eagle
So sad to feel so helpless on the radio. There was really no way around that line of thunderstorms.
The pilot says "We're upside down, hurry"??
Ground school said dont fly in unsafe conditions
@@hadleymanmusic Well, quite. But that just moves the problem to defining unsafe conditions. If you won’t dispatch with any weather between you and your destination, you’ll never leave the ground half the time if you’re doing serious cross country. Flying back and forth between PA and Florida, for example, you know there’s gonna be weather somewhere unless it’s a huge high pressure system. So you figure out a plan, launch and then improvise along the way, rerouting and deviating as you need to. The problem is knowing when it’s beaten you such that it’s time to land short and wait it out. This guy was over the Gulf and trapped in the weather, so by the time it went wrong, he had no bolt holes. The mistake happened way earlier: Flying into the weather equivalent of a blind canyon.
You are right.i grew up in South Florida, and the weather can be totally schizophrenic.
If you are a pilot,sailor, fisherman or a diver,you
need to be on top of the weatherll
One bad
squall line can
adversly affect aviators, boaters, divers, swimmers, and surfers.
As bad as I hurt
for this family , I can't help - what the hell was he thinking!????
d they come in so fast
I
M
It must be so sickening for the other pilots in the air when they hear one of their own go down.
I always heard turbulence can't bring down a plane. Or is that only for big commercial airlines?
oh man if his radar wasn't showing him accurate picture (of what we can see clearly now on the map) thats terrifying, he probably would have turned around long before it was too late
It’s sure good that other pilot was there to do ATCs job and clog up the radio so if 67D somehow made it out, there was no chance for ATC to reach the emergency aircraft.
“A man’s got to know his limitations “
A twin Cessna was IFR?? What instruments? They don’t have things like TCAS or instrument landing systems, do they??
Anyone know who was on the flight?
Ever heard about max. manieuvering speed ? (VA)
He should have been at or below maneuvering speed before this happened.😢
We have planes that can fly through the eye wall of hurricanes but our commercial planes can’t fly through thunder storms
That one was tough to listen to.
Upside down? Like you never rolled on flight sim?
no, like a the wings broke off and it's upside down because there's no more lift, because the wings don't exist anymore.
God Bless the crew and passengers. 🙏🙏
Getaway 1046, I can only find a reference to getaway being a fictional airline in toy story. Does anyone have any info on this particular aircraft?
Long haul freight pilot here………. We used to always say, “we don’t deviate, we penetrate!!! Yeee Haaa!!!”
This video makes me think how idiotic that stupid statement really was.
RIP to the crew…
What's the audio at the end? Was that on frequency or was it tapes from ATC?
Many older twins have old radars that allow you to find yourself in a shadow...which is often deadly. Have counseled individuals using NEXRAD. During heavy activity the update can easily exceed 20 minutes...Nearly useless for tactical needs of dodging storms. You get away with this for years...until you don't. Condolences to all.
@@danielgoodson703 Quite! I’d add that a Stormscope can provide pretty useful information, too. I had a controller vectoring me between two cells that looked the same on the radar, but that had vastly different signatures on the scope. One was clearly dissipating, while the other was still pretty active. I wouldn’t fly through either, but I made sure to give a wider birth to the active one.
Attenuation....it'll get you if you don't know what you're looking at. Adsb helps out a lot with an overlay if you pay attention to the time stamps. Sad..
Nature don’t play
For real.
I don't know what he had for weather radar, but no pilot in his right mind would have attempted to pick though that mess. I've been a pilot for over 50 years, and I can't believe the cumulative accidents happening these days for no good reason, other than bad judgement and pilot error. What are they teaching in flight schools these days? I'm also retired ATC, and I would have been a little more aggressive about cluing the pilot in as to what lay ahead of him.
Does the radar always make a little fire when they crash?
who said anything about a radar?
An inexperienced operator can think it is clear beyond their aircraft radar return and fly into a sucker hole where there is extreme weather
I'm sure this wasn't the pilots first mistake. Driving a car you have rules, regulations and laws. You break enough of them and you lose your license. Why the same standards don't apply to aviation and flying boggles my mind...how are these pilots allowed to continue to keep flying? There should be some way to ground them.
An unfortunate hazard when flying in Florida. ATC sucks at telling pilots of embedded CB’s
Look at the size and severity of that line of activity. Deviate around? wtf
Not every one that pilots should
If you’re relying on a controller to tell you which way is the best (safest) way to go….
And trying to do a 180 course reversal in a 2000 fpm downdraft…
Damn.
no preparation and situation awareness.
@@danemulligan The turn is the key. Nearly all of these go south once the guy loses his nerve and tries to go back the way he came. I’m not knocking the guy: The temptation must be enormous. Plus we’re so taught to fly altitude that we desperately fight the up and down drafts instead of saying, okay, Mr. Controller, I screwed up, I’m gonna need a block altitude here, and transitioning to flying attitude. Easy to be smart from here, I know, but it’s still worth noting.
Yep,we have more than a few examples of this. Like,wtf, were you asleep during ground school!????
@@sarahalbers5555I think it’s something that needs more reinforcement during instrument training. I remember reading more about it in “IFR” than I do from my instructor.
Follow Mike Patey's 3 strikes rule.
Used to be based in SFO .
No wonder i had nightmares
Damn
so, the average career cargo mission in msfs24
You got the career missions to work ??
Crazy a F to fly a light twin into that mess. No way I would have even considered it. 1:19
Is he asking god to hurry?
Planes are having a bad day
Even in our 200 ton airliner we do not fly in or under the RED or in severe known icing
Jesus!!! That's hard to listen too
indeed…
Flying is safe if you obey the rules and use common sense.
Seems like a lot of ppl should not be flying these days.
Pilot Institute posted a detailed analysis on how an otherwise effective pilot was lulled into the jaws of a convective beast - ruclips.net/video/P8fMfRQP9Ig/видео.html
Damn it.
RIP
This was 2009
RIP :(
😢💔❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼✝️✝️✝️✝️✝️
Why don't you show a label identifying the plane(s)? Why don't you show other planes in the audio for context? Why do your speeds seem off? Have you seen how ATC Audio does a far better job of this?
You should ask for your money back.
You must be fun at parties.
Maybe you should start your own website.