Small plane crash at airport; no one notices

[ratty]

From the CNN website . . .

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/29/us/plane-crash-mystery/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

Single-engine Cessna crashed near the runway in the night and noone noticed.

[Tako_Kichi]

The pilot was a local guy in a hired plane belonging to the local club. There are a lot of strange things going on in this incident besides the fact no one noticed the crash for several hours at an international airport. More info can be found here:

http://blogs.windsorstar.com/2013/10/29/one-dead-after-windsor-registered-plane-crashes-in-nashville/

[TARPSBird]

Strange incident, and more than a little creepy.

[srgalahad]

Well, let's see...

-The NTSB will be involved because of the crash itself
-The FAA will be involved because of the airspace violation(s) and any ATC issues
-The FAA again because of possible communications regarding weather reports/briefings
-NavCanada will be involved regarding flight operations on departure
-Transport Canada will be involved concerning pilot licensing and record-keeping
-The FBO/flying club will be involved as a result of pilot training and the rental
-At least two insurance companies will be involved, maybe more
-Customs and Border Protection, DHS and likely the FBI will be involved

Boy, does this have the potential for getting ugly, not to mention what boils up once the politicians get their lips flapping.
One small aircraft, one pilot and likely one BIG
http://www.annaguirre.com/wp-content/uploads/can-o-worms.gif

[KellyB]

What about NCIS?

[TeaSea]

Seems simple to me. He most likely attempted an approach VFR in IFR conditions (could be wrong of course, but with initial info that seems most likely). At night with the tower closed no one would have noticed unless they were at that end of the field. In foggy conditions, as was indicated, no one would have seen it. Nashville's a pretty good sized field. I've been there several times.

The only thing that makes this odd is that he crashed on the airport. Had he crashed up against the side of a mountain somewhere it wouldn't be considered so odd....a tragedy certainly, but not odd.

Sorry to see it.

srgalahad's right of course, but that's the way it always is....just got a few more alphabets in this one.

[Skyhawk_310R]

Well, based on the timeline, he was certainly attempting a landing. I can see a couple of options here. One, and most likely the case, is he was not in radio contact with tower on an IFR approach. So, if that is the case, how could tower had known he was there? Can you imagine the horror that could have added to the mix if he crashed on the runway without tower knowing of the attempted landing and then another plane in IMC conditions (night and fog) was cleared to land and then impacted the debris field while trying to slow down after successful landing!

TeaSea. the article reports that this tower is open 24/7. So, I don't think it would have been legal for him to operate as though he was landing in Class E airspace (for those who don't know, this is what Class C or D reverts to when the control tower is closed, and in the ATIS or AWOS report, it announces this). But, even if he made this error, he should have been on an IFR clearance when attempting to land at an airport during IMC conditions, which according to the article was the case. Therefore, the protocol is for the pilot to contact approach control soon as possible after successful landing to advise he was safe. Absent that call, approach control is then supposed to initiate emergency actions, to include shutting down the airport until it can be scanned to see if the pilot crashed.

Ken

[PeteHam]

The plot thickens .....

Reported on Avweb tonight .......


http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archives/101/2667-full.html?ET=avweb:e2667:270623a:&st=email#220902 (http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archives/101/2667-full.html?ET=avweb:e2667:270623a:&st=email#220902)<o:p></o:p>
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New Details, More Questions In Nashville Crash (http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/New-Details-More-Questions-In-Nashville-Crash220902-1.html) <o:p></o:p>

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A Canadian newspaper is reporting that the pilot of a Cessna 172 who died in unusual circumstances in a crash at Nashville International Airport early Tuesday (http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/172-Crash-At-Nashville-Airport-Unnoticed-For-Hours220892-1.html) has the same name as a convicted bank robber and facing recent pornography charges who said he was embarking on a 30-minute flight. The Windsor Star says (http://blogs.windsorstar.com/2013/10/30/pilot-in-fatal-nashville-plane-crash-was-supposed-to-be-landing-on-pelee-island/) it has confirmed the identity of the pilot as 45-year-old Michael Callan. A Michael Callan of the same age "has a criminal record dating back to the late 1990s in Windsor, including a number of violent bank robberies," according to the Star. Callan filed a flight plan from Windsor to Pelee Island, about 30 minutes away, and closed that flight plan. It's not known if he actually landed there but sometime after 2:45 a.m. the 172 crashed at Nashville, about 500 miles from Pelee Island, and Callan died. There was dense fog at the time. It took up to seven hours to discover the burned out 172 and authorities have said that no one heard a radio call requesting landing permission or issuing a distress call. The FAA and NTSB are investigating.<o:p></o:p>
Callan was a member of the Windsor Flying Club and the club apparently knew something about the past referred to by the newspaper but decided it wasn't relevant to his flying activities. “What I did was establish that he was a pretty good pilot,” Club President David Gillies told the Star. “He has a legitimate pilots’ licence and medical, a night rating, quite a few hours behind him and zero infractions while flying an airplane. In 2011 when he came back to us and asked us if he could re-join the club, the board discussed it and said well, who are we to judge? And in he comes. And he was allowed back into the club again.” The paper says the bank robber Callan was also facing charges related to him openly watching porn on his computer at a library and on transit buses. The charges resulted from a crackdown on child pornography by police in Windsor.<o:p></o:p>


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[Skyhawk_310R]

Wow! Just utterly wow!

Never expected to read anything like that!

Now, one must wonder if his plan was to sneak into an airport in the United States to escape justice in Canada? If that is true, then I am glad no one else died. Landing in fog without doing everything by the numbers is a very bad idea, and even if you do everything right, often means you have to go around on the missed approach procedure.

Ken

[TeaSea]

Missed the tower being open 24/7....if so, then he certainly wasn't talking to the tower.

Plot is thickening though....

[PeteHam]

Windsor to Pelee Island, about 30 minutes away, ...... the 172 crashed at Nashville, about 500 miles from Pelee Island


Depending on the winds and cruise speed the 172 ( with standard tanks ) would be almost tanks dry by the time he crashed.

Pete.

[Skyhawk_310R]

Windsor to Pelee Island, about 30 minutes away, ...... the 172 crashed at Nashville, about 500 miles from Pelee Island


Depending on the winds and cruise speed the 172 ( with standard tanks ) would be almost tanks dry by the time he crashed.

Pete.

Well, not exactly, as depending on the model of C-172, he was looking at either 40 gallons or 52 gallons if the fuel tanks were full. It would have taken him around 4.5 hours to get to Nashville and he would burn about 7 to 8 gallons per hour. So, the math is that he would use about 31.5 to 36 gallons of fuel. That would leave him over an hour of reserve with the 52 gallon tanks, which is more than the FAA requires even on an IFR clearance, which is only 45 minutes (30 minutes reserve in VFR).

But, clearly there are many potential factors I cannot account for.

Ken