Cessna Caravan down in HNL

[traumamed]

Looks like two fatal when a 208 Caravan hit a building in Honolulu today. Fortunately no ground fatalities. Appears to have been a Part 91 training flight of some sort.

News article here

ASN link

Extensive video news coverage

Edited to update details: Aircraft tail # N689KA. The aircraft had just departed KHNL when its pilot reported being "out of control" to ATC. It was observed to be in a steep left bank and collided with a vacant building at a ~90 degree bank angle.

 

[Kenny Phillips]

Looks like two fatal when a 208 Caravan hit a building in Honolulu today. Fortunately no ground fatalities. Appears to have been a Part 91 training flight of some sort.

News article here

ASN link

Extensive video news coverage

Edited to update details: Aircraft tail # N689KA. The aircraft had just departed KHNL when its pilot reported being "out of control" to ATC. It was observed to be in a steep left bank and collided with a vacant building at a ~90 degree bank angle.

Interesting that the pilot reported that particular condition; was the plane not controllable? I'll need to see how the control locks work on that.
Edit: Cargo flight, so gross misloading could be possible (wrong weights, and/or aft CG). But it didn't get far.

 

[luvflyin]

Interesting that the pilot reported that particular condition; was the plane not controllable? I'll need to see how the control locks work on that.

That, and I wonder if this was the first flight after some maintenance was done and a 'controls free and correct wasn't done.'

 

[traumamed]

That, and I wonder if this was the first flight after some maintenance was done and a 'controls free and correct wasn't done.'

The plane had only been on the ground for 67 minutes as per ADS-B data, so maintenance seems less likely. That obviously doesn't rule out a control system issue though, or even a gust lock left in place.

What is interesting is that one of the two pilots was apparently a student. As in a primary student. That seems a little sketch to have a PPL student at the controls of a plane with a 675 hp turbine and a wing loading of nearly 29 lbs/ft^2 at max gross. (A C172 is 14 lb/ft^2, for comparison.)

I wonder if left-turning tendencies +/- speed mismanagement played a role. An accelerated stall sure seems to be a possibility.

EDIT: New information indicates both pilots had commercial licenses.

 

[donjohnston]

What is interesting is that one of the two pilots was apparently a student. As in a primary student. That seems a little sketch to have a PPL student at the controls of a plane with a 675 hp turbine and a wing loading of nearly 29 lbs/ft^2 at max gross. (A C172 is 14 lb/ft^2, for comparison.)

Is there something which says the student pilot was flying the plane? I flew up front in a twin otter when I was a student pilot. Just because I was sitting in the right seat doesn't mean I was flying the plane.

 

[traumamed]

Is there something which says the student pilot was flying the plane? I flew up front in a twin otter when I was a student pilot. Just because I was sitting in the right seat doesn't mean I was flying the plane.

With both pilots dead, it may never be possible to answer that question with certainty.

 

[Tools]

Navy had a group called AFIP, armed forces institute of pathology (or something like that), that could tell those sorts of things often by forensically examining (in crazy detail) injuries and associating them with positioning.

Obviously not end all, be all, but pretty amazing.

 

[wanttaja]

Navy had a group called AFIP, armed forces institute of pathology (or something like that), that could tell those sorts of things often by forensically examining (in crazy detail) injuries and associating them with positioning.

The NTSB has a similar process...looking at hand injuries to determine who was holding the stick, etc. As you say, not necessarily definitive, but they do look into those details.

Ron Wanttaja

 

[RyanShort1]

Is there something which says the student pilot was flying the plane? I flew up front in a twin otter when I was a student pilot. Just because I was sitting in the right seat doesn't mean I was flying the plane.

I had a discussion with an FAA guy who said that there are usually hand and especially thumb fractures on the pilot flying.

 

[Zeldman]

I had a discussion with an FAA guy who said that there are usually hand and especially thumb fractures on the pilot flying.

I learned (the hard way) to let go of the steering wheel of a race car before hitting something. I wonder if I would do the same thing in an airplane if I was a nano second away from slamming into the ground and knowing this will be a fatal.??

 

[455 Bravo Uniform]

I learned (the hard way) to let go of the steering wheel of a race car before hitting something. I wonder if I would do the same thing in an airplane if I was a nano second away from slamming into the ground and knowing this will be a fatal.??

There’s flying it into the crash or until you’re tied down. I think it’d be hard to undo 100s or 1000s of hours of primacy. Plus in the end I would think there is a “brace yourself” tendency and you’re probably already gripping the controls tightly. We hope none of us has to find out.

 

[Fearless Tower]

What is interesting is that one of the two pilots was apparently a student. As in a primary student. That seems a little sketch to have a PPL student at the controls of a plane with a 675 hp turbine and a wing loading of nearly 29 lbs/ft^2 at max gross. (A C172 is 14 lb/ft^2, for comparison.)

You are ill-informed.

Loved ones mourn 2 killed in plane crash near Honolulu airport

Their identities have yet to be officially released, but loved ones have shared their names with Hawaii News Now.

www.hawaiinewsnow.com

Both pilots are in the airmen registry with commercial licenses.

It WAS an empty training flight, but not primary training.

 

[traumamed]

You are ill-informed.

Both pilots are in the airmen registry with commercial licenses.

Noted. Happy to be corrected. ASN was reporting otherwise as of 12 hours ago. New information must have become available, as happens with these things.