How does this happen? Plane crash at towered airport not noticed for hours...

If a tree falls in the woods....................................:D
 
Pi1otguy said:
Was it an area not visible from the tower? For that matter, do we really expect the tower to see everything that goes on on the field?
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You'd think they'd see the fire...

Controllers contacted airport personnel, who found the fire-scarred wreckage. The plane's sole occupant was dead, officials said.
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The skydiving outfit at my airport had a jumper who's chute didn't open and nobody noticed until his girlfriend came looking for him a couple of days later.

You're on your own out there....
 
I can tell you how this can happen happen. Foggy night, tower doesn't see entire runway.

BS123: Bugsmashwer 123L on the ILS 13 with Kilo
Tower: 23L cleared to land runway 13, taxi to the FBO, monitor this frequency.
.
click 'flight plan closed'.
.
.
.
Splat.
.
.
.
.
.
 
weilke said:
I can tell you how this can happen happen. Foggy night, tower doesn't see entire runway.

BS123: Bugsmashwer 123L on the ILS 13 with Kilo
Tower: 23L cleared to land runway 13, taxi to the FBO, monitor this frequency.
.
click 'flight plan closed'.
.
.
.
Splat.
.
.
.
.
.
Click to expand...
I'm sure it's been done but I can't think of a time I've ever had a controller give me taxi instructions with the landing clearance.

If they can't see the runway you'd think they'd have the common sense to wait until they knew the airplane was safely on the ground before closing the IFR flight plan.
 
KBNA 290753Z 00000KT 1/4SM R02L/0700V1000FT FG VV001 12/12 A3028 RMK AO2 SLP252 T01220117

Supposedly this happened around 3AM local. If so this might explain why it wasn't seen. Still, kinda hard to believe no one didn't wonder why he never checked in with ground.
 
jesse said:
If they can't see the runway you'd think they'd have the common sense to wait until they knew the airplane was safely on the ground before closing the IFR flight plan.
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Exactly. The plane either was taking off or landing, either way one would expect that the controller would notice if an aircraft went suddenly missing somewhere between the runway and pattern altitude.
 
Busflyer said:
Still, kinda hard to believe no one didn't wonder why he never checked in with ground.
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Because often enough you dont have to check in with ground as they keep you on the same frequency. They are supposed to have you report clear of runway if they can't see you, but not everything in the order gets done every time.
 
jesse said:
I'm sure it's been done but I can't think of a time I've ever had a controller give me taxi instructions with the landing clearance.

If they can't see the runway you'd think they'd have the common sense to wait until they knew the airplane was safely on the ground before closing the IFR flight plan.
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It happens all the time when you're the only person around. Usually late at night when it's the same guy on tower, ground, and clearance anyway.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk
 
The problem is that based on everything reported so far, it sounds like this guy wasn't even on an IFR flight plan and talking to anyone in the system.
 
weilke said:
Because often enough you dont have to check in with ground as they keep you on the same frequency. They are supposed to have you report clear of runway if they can't see you, but not everything in the order gets done every time.
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Didn't necessarily mean it had to be ground. I know late at night one guy is usually working both ground and tower. Point was, if he had been talking to anyone at all, and maybe he wasn't, you'd think someone would have wondered, "what happened to that 172?"
 
weilke said:
I can tell you how this can happen happen. Foggy night, tower doesn't see entire runway.

BS123: Bugsmashwer 123L on the ILS 13 with Kilo
Tower: 23L cleared to land runway 13, taxi to the FBO, monitor this frequency.
.
click 'flight plan closed'.
.
.
.
Splat.
.
.
.
.
.
Click to expand...

There's no click.
 
Busflyer said:
KBNA 290753Z 00000KT 1/4SM R02L/0700V1000FT FG VV001 12/12 A3028 RMK AO2 SLP252 T01220117

Supposedly this happened around 3AM local. If so this might explain why it wasn't seen. Still, kinda hard to believe no one didn't wonder why he never checked in with ground.
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Reports that I've seen do not indicate that he was ever in communications with ATC.
 
roncachamp said:
There's no click.
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I understand the system automatically closes the flight plan if the destination is a towered airport with the tower in operation. The trigger is when the center or approach controller hands the flight off. Correct/incorrect ?
 
FIDO computer entry. RS (remove strip) strip #123. Or, you could just let it time out on it's own.
 
weilke said:
I understand the system automatically closes the flight plan if the destination is a towered airport with the tower in operation. The trigger is when the center or approach controller hands the flight off. Correct/incorrect ?
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IFR-----yes
VFR-----no
 
weilke said:
I understand the system automatically closes the flight plan if the destination is a towered airport with the tower in operation. Correct/incorrect ?
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Yes, but there's no action that needs to be taken to close it. It's closed simply because the aircraft has safely reached the clearance limit and the system knows that because part of the system, the controller in the tower, observed it or received a report that the aircraft had landed.
 
roncachamp said:
In terminal facilities it's usually gone even before the aircraft lands.
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Just giving an example of how to remove the aircraft from the system after cancelling IFR or landing. Like I said, not needed because it'll time out anyway. Think the only time I had to remove a strip is if I was trying to get the departure strip to activate. Not sure if the system still has that limitation or not.
 
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Pi1otguy said:
Was it an area not visible from the tower? For that matter, do we really expect the tower to see everything that goes on on the field?
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Since it happened alongside I runway I'd hope the tower would see it, although the report mentions low visibility. But if that was the case, I'd think the guy would have been IFR. At a minimum, with a 24 hour tower, you'd think there would have been some communications. Very strange.
 
Busflyer said:
Didn't necessarily mean it had to be ground. I know late at night one guy is usually working both ground and tower. Point was, if he had been talking to anyone at all, and maybe he wasn't, you'd think someone would have wondered, "what happened to that 172?"
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At Crystal airport near Minneapolis, a SR22 checked in with the tower right around closing time. One of the controllers acknowledged the SR22s checkin with 'roger', packed up his stuff, turned everything to overnight operations and went downstairs. On the way to their parked cars the controller noticed the burning plane at the end of the runway. CEN09FA363

Yes, someone in the tower may pay attention to what you are doing, but sometimes they dont.
 
LDJones said:
Since it happened alongside I runway I'd hope the tower would see it, although the report mentions low visibility. But if that was the case, I'd think the guy would have been IFR. At a minimum, with a 24 hour tower, you'd think there would have been some communications. Very strange.
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Makes you wonder whether this was someone with an electrical failure caught over really crummy weather who just took his chances shooting an ILS at the biggest airport around.
 
cheap weenie said:
It happens all the time when you're the only person around. Usually late at night when it's the same guy on tower, ground, and clearance anyway.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk
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I've made numerous approaches to controlled airports at night at minimums to where the fog was so thick you couldn't see the tower when you taxied by it. The controllers were most certainly smart enough to make sure you got down safely even though they couldn't see you.
 
jesse said:
I've made numerous approaches to controlled airports at night at minimums to where the fog was so thick you couldn't see the tower when you taxied by it. The controllers were most certainly smart enough to make sure you got down safely even though they couldn't see you.
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Okay. I was responding to the question about getting taxi clearance while still in the air.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk
 
weilke said:
Makes you wonder whether this was someone with an electrical failure caught over really crummy weather who just took his chances shooting an ILS at the biggest airport around.
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Yeah, my VOR/CDI/GS indicator operates on vacuum and static, too.
 
EdFred said:
Yeah, my VOR/CDI/GS indicator operates on vacuum and static, too.
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In a total electrical failure I could see myself attempting what he did (if I knew there was no VMC within my range) using Foreflight. It can be done...
 
LDJones said:
Since it happened alongside I runway I'd hope the tower would see it, although the report mentions low visibility. But if that was the case, I'd think the guy would have been IFR. At a minimum, with a 24 hour tower, you'd think there would have been some communications. Very strange.
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Based on some more recent comments in the other thread, it sounds like he was departing and being from Canada, he may have thought the tower was closed and taxied/attempted to take off in low vis without ever talking to ATC.

If that was the case, Tower would never have known he was there....especially of he hadn't turned on his xpdr.
 
EdFred said:
Yeah, my VOR/CDI/GS indicator operates on vacuum and static, too.
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IF the alternator goes out, standard procedure would be to shed all unneccesary consumers of electricity. You can fly an approach on a single narco 122.
 
This story is getting odder by the minute. According to the flying club, the renter had taken the plane to Pelee Island in lake Erie and called after his arrival there.

I am starting to think that this was not the renter who crashed in Nashville.
 
Was the tower even in operation at 3AM?

The sequester and shutdown caused FAA ATC cutbacks, ya know.
 
Bizarre indeed. Having flown VFR into and out of BNA several times this summer, as I recall the tower is closest to the center runway, although there are a number of buildings between the tower and the runway. I don't recall if any part of the runway was actually obscured from the tower. And I too don't think I've ever received a taxi instruction before I was actually on the ground, even if the same controller is working all positions. Sounds like, for whatever reason, they just didn't know the guy was there. BNA approach has radar, so you'd think somebody would have been asking questions if he was an arrival. More plausible that he was departing unannounced.
 
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