Antonov An-2 crash

[Tarheelpilot]

An-2 is a pretty good ag plane among other roles it does. What I was saying is that in the 80’s when An-3 came out, its pilots were complaining that it couldn’t be flown in the same manner as An-2 due to, in part, the turbine lag they experience. Whether that was BS, or lack of training, or a crappy Russian turbine engine at the time, I don’t know.

I’m not arguing that turbines make bad ag planes. I’m simply stating that at that time that turbine made that plane not as desirable for those pilots. According to what I read at that time(which could also be BS).

Ahh

I would guess their issue with the turbine was lag on approaches working the back side of power curve. Especially if the turbine they were running had a free power turbine like the pt-6. They are very laggy. During AG ops the power is not moved around a lot so the lag isn’t an issue.

 

[JimNtexas]

McDonnell Douglas used to show all mechanic new hires a short clip of an F-4 that crashed due to a box wrench left in the controls. It took off normally, then pitched up at a steep angle. Both the pilot and GIB ejected safely and the plane stalled and crashed spectacularly. The fact that this AN-2 increased its pitch radically may indicate something was wrong with the flight controls. Too bad, nice Biplane.

That was my old squadron, 90FS in the Phillipines in the early 80s! A wrench had been glued into the tailcone with anticorrosion paint.

In the F-4 we did full aft stick takeoffs. On this flight the wrench fell into the elevator controls during the takeoff role, jamming the elevator full nose up. The Jet went straight up and crashed right in front of a C-5.

When the crew ejected the backseater’s rocket motor did not fire, but he tumbled out as the plane inverted. He got one swing and hit the ground hard. He was in a huge cast for months.

 

[Brad Smith]

That was my old squadron, 90FS in the Phillipines in the early 80s! A wrench had been glued into the tailcone with anticorrosion paint.

In the F-4 we did full aft stick takeoffs. On this flight the wrench fell into the elevator controls during the takeoff role, jamming the elevator full nose up. The Jet went straight up and crashed right in front of a C-5.

When the crew ejected the backseater’s rocket motor did not fire, but he tumbled out as the plane inverted. He got one swing and hit the ground hard. He was in a huge cast for months.

I was hired at McDonnell Douglas in 1986 and saw many issues with tools and other items inadvertently left on the plane. The last plane I worked on was the C-17 and remember a plant wide stand down due to a 5/16 wrench falling from the ceiling on a test flight. Crew was not happy. Boeing went to a central shadow toolbox system where mechanics checked out tools and had to return them at the end of the day. God help those mechanics that couldn’t find a tool at quitting time. We ALL had to search the plane until the missing tool showed up.

 

[denverpilot]

If you watch carefully and listen, you can see and hear the flaps being retracted as the nose comes up. Pilot pulled too much transitioning, perhaps also with engine power falling off or the pilot pulling it back for some unknown reason.

Annnnd stall/spin. Looks like the engine turns the conventional direction, too. Left spinny spin spinning we will go...

More right rudder. Don’t pull the nose up that much while retracting flaps. Pay attention to airspeed.

Probably loaded too far aft, too.

 

[CSairplane]

There was an AN-2 at Richmond Airport (08R) Rhode Island. Looked like it was trucked in, and there was a hangar for it under construction nearby. Looks like a restoration was being contemplated. I have no idea if it was finished (either the hangar or the restoration). Anyone know further details?

-Skip

edit: restoration probably not completed. Google Maps Images shows the hangar still a steel frame and the AN-2 isn’t there. . -Skip

The restoration was not completed but the hanger was. The aircraft was sold and is now under restoration according to what I'm told. You are correct that it was trucked in to that airport but there is much more to the story.

That aircraft originally was an eastern European and Soviet bird, a female defector pilot flew went through the Arctic to America. The aircraft was eventually used as part of the stealth program in the 1970s. It was bought by a local Rhode Islander as part of a nonprofit exhibition aircraft. The hanger was actually one of two outlying state owned hangers for two DeHaviland Beaver amphib aircraft that were owned by the state for monitoring our lakes and ponds. The individual was given one of the hangers but he had to truck it out of the swampy area. The Antonov was flown from out west somewhere and landed at Quonset under a ferry permit. The fabric was quite deteriorated and they continued to repair it along the way with duct tape. Only after they got to Rhode Island they found out the duct tape company had a "most unique usage contest" that paid something like $50,000, but they were beyond the submission deadline. They were told they were definitely have won! Anyway, the wings were removed and it was indeed trucked from Quonset to where you saw it, after removing the wings, was towed by the tail with an old diesel dump truck. The driver of the truck was a Vietnam veteran pilot with thousands of hours by the way. He said he only went by one cop, who pulled out followed him for a bit and pulled right back off the road again "no way too close to the end of my shift" kind of thing! Anyway it's very cool that that aircraft will be flying again.

 

[bonefishpete]

From what I remember they can’t be certified due to the old Cold War FAA rules that no Soviet aircraft can ever be certified in the US. Interesting aircraft, which has been revived with a new turboprop version.

Fun Fact: a pair of Hueys had an air to air kill of one of these beasts in Nam, using their door guns.

I believe Air America helicopters didn’t have door guns. They were civilian. Crew chief with AK47 if I remember the painting of it.
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