Twin down near APA this morning

Damn......:sad::sad::sad:

Looks like the front seat of the plane in the foreground of that pic,, 30+ feet from the wreckage...:eek:
 
A question for any Twin driver.

This was a Cessna 404 with two 375 HP turbocharged engines.
I thought you could fly on one engine.

What are some of the scenarios that would cause this plane to not make it back to the airport and land safely?
 
Scott@KTYR said:
A question for any Twin driver.

This was a Cessna 404 with two 375 HP turbocharged engines.
I thought you could fly on one engine.

What are some of the scenarios that would cause this plane to not make it back to the airport and land safely?
Click to expand...

I fly 421 with the same engines.

If there was a sudden engine failure at a critical point, like taking off, full power and airspeed close to Vx for possible noise abatement, then it could be a VMC accident. The gear reduction units have been known to suddenly fail with catastrophic results.

Otherwise even close to max gross takeoff weight the plane should be able to be flown in some sort of pattern and land as long as the pilot can feather the prop and clean up the airframe.

And VMC isn't a slow roll, it is a quick, sudden snap roll.
 
Zeldman said:
I fly 421 with the same engines.

If there was a sudden engine failure at a critical point, like taking off, full power and airspeed close to Vx for possible noise abatement, then it could be a VMC accident. The gear reduction units have been known to suddenly fail with catastrophic results.

Otherwise even close to max gross takeoff weight the plane should be able to be flown in some sort of pattern and land as long as the pilot can feather the prop and clean up the airframe.

And VMC isn't a slow roll, it is a quick, sudden snap roll.
Click to expand...

Ok Thanks for the info. I understand now.

http://www.rapp.org/archives/2012/02/vmc-rollover/
 
Zeldman said:
I fly 421 with the same engines.

If there was a sudden engine failure at a critical point, like taking off, full power and airspeed close to Vx for possible noise abatement, then it could be a VMC accident. The gear reduction units have been known to suddenly fail with catastrophic results.

Otherwise even close to max gross takeoff weight the plane should be able to be flown in some sort of pattern and land as long as the pilot can feather the prop and clean up the airframe.

And VMC isn't a slow roll, it is a quick, sudden snap roll.
Click to expand...

flightaware track shows he made it about 800' agl and groundspeed was fairly low as he descended...bad day fer sure for the 20-something an hour that Key Lime pays...
 
Wow, he was flying an empty 404, losing an engine shouldn't have been a major issue, I wonder what else was going on.
 
Scott@KTYR said:
A question for any Twin driver.

This was a Cessna 404 with two 375 HP turbocharged engines.
I thought you could fly on one engine.

What are some of the scenarios that would cause this plane to not make it back to the airport and land safely?
Click to expand...

There's a couple issues, incorrect ASI reading or cant read it, can't feather the prop and still have the gear hanging, or just fail to maintain control of the aircraft.
 
Henning said:
Wow, he was flying an empty 404, losing an engine shouldn't have been a major issue, I wonder what else was going on.
Click to expand...
Icing is a definite possibility. When I heard the news this morning, I cringed at the phrase "it's a miracle he didn't hit the houses".

The weather in Colorado has been miserable for days. This morning at KAPA is was bitterly cold, light wind, fog. Personally, I think the pilot was foolish to even consider flying if the 404 doesn't have equipment for icing.
 
murphey said:
Icing is a definite possibility. When I heard the news this morning, I cringed at the phrase "it's a miracle he didn't hit the houses".

The weather in Colorado has been miserable for days. This morning at KAPA is was bitterly cold, light wind, fog. Personally, I think the pilot was foolish to even consider flying if the 404 doesn't have equipment for icing.
Click to expand...

When I listened to the thirty minute liveATC segment no one mentioned ice. I suspect the clouds are glaciated since they are below 0*F.
 
My brother was a lead mech a several years ago and was shocked to hear who the pilot was.


Lost a good man.

:sad:
 
Clark1961 said:
When I listened to the thirty minute liveATC segment no one mentioned ice. I suspect the clouds are glaciated since they are below 0*F.
Click to expand...
New concept for me - what are glaciated clouds?
 
murphey said:
New concept for me - what are glaciated clouds?
Click to expand...

The cloud's water exists as ice. Temperature is not an absolute determinate since liquid water has been demonstrated to exist at sub-zero Fahrenheit temperatures. But if it is a frigid airmass to begin with it is more likely the clouds will be glaciated.
 
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Bill Watson said:
... and that's a good thing, right? Ice doesn't stick to wings - it just forms on them?
Click to expand...

In my experience with flying through snowstorms, correct. Icing only occurs when liquid water turns to ice when it hits the aircraft. One has to be careful that the clouds are frozen since towering cumulus can put liquid water into air that is sub-zero.
 
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