Pre Lim Report on IAC 265

cyrusdvirus

Looks like they're calling it CFIT.

Irish Times wrote:

A preliminary report into the crash of an Air Corps plane in Connemara last month in which a flight instructor and his trainee pilot were killed has found the aircraft hit the ground at high speed at a time of “rapidly changing cloud height and visibility”.

The two-seater training plane, which had been on training exercise from Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, in Co Dublin to Galway Airport, crashed on a remote hillside in Crumlin East, Cornamona, Co Galway on October 12th.

Captain Derek Furniss (32) and Cadet David Jevens (22), who were manning the single engine Pilatus PC-9M aircraft, were killed in the crash

The Air Accident Investigation Unit’s preliminary report into the incident, published today, said no technical defects were identified with the plane.

The tandem-seated aircraft, with Cadet Jevens in the front and Captain Furniss in the rear, had been tasked to conduct a “navigational cross-country training exercise” from Baldonnel to Galway Airport via Carrigallen in Co Cavan and Maum in Co Galway.

The plane left Baldonnel at 4.20pm, followed by two other PC-9M aircraft on the same exercise, at intervals of 15 minutes.

The aircraft reported to Shannon Air Traffic Control at 4.39pm that it was over Carrigallen, Co Cavan, flying at 1,500 feet and setting course for Maum, Co Galway.

It was last recorded by the Shannon radar over Lower Lough Mask at 4.55pm flying at an altitude of 1,300 feet, and still on course to Maum.

The AAIU was informed by the fire station officer in Castlebar, Co Mayo at 5.10pm of a report made by a resident of the Crumlin Valley that she had heard an aircraft crash nearby.

A search by several local residents a short time later located the wreckage of the aircraft and its occupants on the northern slopes of the Crumlin Valley, some 800 feet above sea level.

The gardaí and emergency services were directed to the crash site, which was then secured, the AAIU's report said.

The plane was fitted with ejector seats triggered by explosives which had not been activated by the crew before the crash.

Investigators said the plane was travelling in a northwesterly direction when it hit the crest of a ridge in the valley and was destroyed on impact.

The debris trail was distributed along a 300-foot slope, which the report said “was characteristic of a high-speed impact”.

Witnesses in the valley, who were interviewed by the AAIU’s three-man investigation team, said they reported seeing the aircraft travelling east down the valley, before “making a steep turn to the north and then climbing”.

They also reported “rapidly changing cloud height and visibility” in the area at that time of the crash.

Preliminary analysis of the combined cockpit voice and flight data recorder indicated the crew were attempting to navigate to their next planned reporting point at Maum at the time of the crash.

A final report on the crash is to be published by the AAIU in the coming months

Deacon Blues posted a link to the AAIU rpt in the A&A forum.
http://www.aaiu.ie/AAIUviewitem.asp?...g=ENG&loc=1652

arybvtcw0eolkf

Forgive my ignorance, but what is CFIT?.

cyrusdvirus

Cason Yellow Back wrote: »

Forgive my ignorance, but what is CFIT?.

Controlled Flight Into Terrain.

Means they can't find anyting wrong with the a/c, and there is no mechanical reason why it crashed.

diverdriver

Controlled Flight Into Terrain, CFIT. To be fair, most of us had figured that out early on. Flew into bad visibility, hit the high ground before they could climb out. It's killed too many pilots over the years.

SamuelFox

Pardon my ignorance but is it normal for a PC9 to fly at 1500 feet? Isn't that very low? I thought the normal flying height for any plane was over 10,000 feet?

concussion

Military aircraft need to fly low at times. All part of the job.

Steyr

SamuelFox wrote: »

Pardon my ignorance but is it normal for a PC9 to fly at 1500 feet? Isn't that very low? I thought the normal flying height for any plane was over 10,000 feet?

The IAC have flown lower..Its part and parcel of a normal day in the Office for Military Aircrew regardless of what Nation they fly for.

diverdriver

It was a low level training exercise with the emphasis on low level. 1500 feet isn't particularly low. As it happens other than airliners most aircraft stay well below 10,000. Many light aircraft barely go above 2000 feet for some reason.

Manic Moran

SamuelFox wrote: »

Pardon my ignorance but is it normal for a PC9 to fly at 1500 feet? Isn't that very low? I thought the normal flying height for any plane was over 10,000 feet?

Depends on the airplane. General aviation (i.e. your average Sunday flier in a Cessna) requires 1,000 feet AGL.

NTM

Steyr

diverdriver wrote: »

Many light aircraft barely go above 2000 feet for some reason.

Thats because its fecking freezing up there! Besides the ground looks nicer from 2000ft and even better at 1000ft.:)

Manic Moran

Climbing to altitude also takes a lot of gas. It's worth it if you're going a long distance (particularly if there's a good tailwind aloft), but if you're just cruising along for an hour or two, you're probably better off staying low.

NTM