Crash kills 4 near West Houston

sht. if it's KIWS, it's just under 4k'. crikey, in that one photo it snapped that pretty large tree right in half. anyone know what kind of plane it was? very sad.
 
Saw this on r/flying.. truly a horrifying and tragic news story.
 
Keep reading about this type of accident. Is there an airplane out there which will stop flying with any door, baggage or cabin, open?
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Keep reading about this type of accident. Is there an airplane out there which will stop flying with any door, baggage or cabin, open?
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Velocity is the only one I can think of where a door open in flight is a genuine emergency and that is due to the gull wing door and pusher prop.

Shouldn't be an issue in a PA32.
 
A bunch of pilots saw it because of an air expo going on. Pretty to tough to see it all over my facebook feed.
 
I live on this airport, they went down right in front of my windows, although I wasn't there at the time. Poor souls. Reinforces both my preflight door checks (luggage door always locked, not just closed), and the need to just fly the airplane...
 
The baggage door popped open when I was training I think around hour number 4. So since then (basically my entire flying career minus four hours) I not only check that it is closed but locked too.
 
My brother just told me about this. His wife works with one of the passengers on this flight. She and her husband were heading to Fredericksburg for the weekend with friends. She had never been in a single engine piston and voiced her safety concerns with her workmates. Apparently, she nervously joked with the office that this would be her last week and that it was good knowing everyone. Last contact was an Instagram pic of her holding her bag in front of N32KK 5 minutes before departing. Her caption: "well, this is happening". Then the news came. Left two young children behind. RIP
 
funkster9 said:
My brother just told me about this. His wife works with one of the passengers on this flight. She and her husband were heading to Fredericksburg for the weekend with friends. She had never been in a single engine piston and voiced her safety concerns with her workmates. Apparently, she nervously joked with the office that this would be her last week and that it was good knowing everyone. Last contact was an Instagram pic of her holding her bag in front of N32KK 5 minutes before departing. Her caption: "well, this is happening". Then the news came. Left two young children behind. RIP
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Well, that can't be good PR for this avocation. To be fair, the engine didn't fail, so the single engine canard is unwarranted. Perception is reality however, that much I have no quarrel with.
 
How long before the NTSB prelim becomes available on their website? 8 weeks? more?
 
There have been cases of Bonanza fatal crashes after a door pops open, and the only effect of an open door is loud, and windy. Plane flies fine, but distraction can kill, and does so regularly.

So sad for this loss.
 
I have asked long ago but don't recall getting an answer. Are Pt23 a/c tested or certified to fly with a door open? Maybe not, but many mfgs do their own testing?
How about Pt25 for that matter; surely they are?
 
Curious what the winds were? Midfield turn to downwind at 100' behind the power curve is not a smart decision. Likely a little too focused on the Louis Vuitton bags falling out of the hatch.
 
funkster9 said:
My brother just told me about this. His wife works with one of the passengers on this flight. She and her husband were heading to Fredericksburg for the weekend with friends. She had never been in a single engine piston and voiced her safety concerns with her workmates. Apparently, she nervously joked with the office that this would be her last week and that it was good knowing everyone. Last contact was an Instagram pic of her holding her bag in front of N32KK 5 minutes before departing. Her caption: "well, this is happening". Then the news came. Left two young children behind. RIP
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What an awful story. :(
 
I discovered that I had not properly secured the door to the baggage compartment during one flight. Had nightmare visions of having to replace the door, which can cost many AMUs. But I remembered that
1. I was flying an airplane
2. That this in no way constituted an emergency
3. it was going to take some time for me to descend anyway, and I had to start that to land at my destination

So I just continued, did a normal landing and caught some well deserved guff from the local pilots. Worst of it was a scratch on the baggage door latch. My CFI buddy did the same thing on his Bravo and lost the door.

Most airplanes are perfectly flyable with a door open, just a bit noisy. Don't drop the airplane to pick up your pencil.
 
Bag door open on a P180 calls for an immediate shutdown of #1. It can put the contents of the bag compartment into the spinning propeller.

Sad story here.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
I have asked long ago but don't recall getting an answer. Are Pt23 a/c tested or certified to fly with a door open? Maybe not, but many mfgs do their own testing?
How about Pt25 for that matter; surely they are?
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Increased drag on the aircraft for sure, so most likely the stall speed goes up. We don't know the details of this flight and will have to see from the NTSB report. In many cases accidents occur when two or more bad situations happen simultaneously. The baggage door opening could have been just one of the issues. Combine something like that with being overweight, or something heavy falling out of the baggage compartment.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Keep reading about this type of accident. Is there an airplane out there which will stop flying with any door, baggage or cabin, open?
Click to expand...

A couple of fatal accidents when people opened a gull wing door on a Socata TB series. Tore the door off, door hit the tail, and down they went. The door has a double catch so you have to try hard to open it while flying.
 
NJP_MAN said:
Bag door open on a P180 calls for an immediate shutdown of #1. It can put the contents of the bag compartment into the spinning propeller.

Sad story here.
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Kiddo's Driver said:
A couple of fatal accidents when people opened a gull wing door on a Socata TB series. Tore the door off, door hit the tail, and down they went. The door has a double catch so you have to try hard to open it while flying.
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So everyone should panic and crash their airplane every time a door comes unlatched. Way to go guys.
 
A few RV-10's have lost a gull-wing cabin doors on climbout at 85-95 kts. Most missed the tail. One hit the horizontal stab and twisted it 4" around. Some lost charts. All landed safely.

Many of us since 2011 have "door open" LED's on the panel and a cam-latch upgrade.
 
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steingar said:
So everyone should panic and crash their airplane every time a door comes unlatched. Way to go guys.
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Way to blow it out of proportion.
The question was asked. I answered it. In the TBs you make sure the door is latched. If it isn't the secondary catch should keep it from flying open. You FLY THE PLANE first. Slow it down to best climb (should already be there on climb out). Then latch it back shut.
If it pops open past the second catch and the door flys open, you slow it down to reduce the stress and you land.
If it pops open past the second catch and tears the door off, you ride that b1tch all the way to the ground like Slim Pickens.
 
KFD said:
Increased drag on the aircraft for sure, so most likely the stall speed goes up. We don't know the details of this flight and will have to see from the NTSB report. In many cases accidents occur when two or more bad situations happen simultaneously. The baggage door opening could have been just one of the issues. Combine something like that with being overweight, or something heavy falling out of the baggage compartment.
Click to expand...

Since when did drag effect stall speed?
 
I lost six close friends because of an open baggage door on a C421. Fly the airplane, it is not even close to being a life threatening event until mistakes make it one.
 
What's up with Houston and GA recently? Maybe I should consider moving.
 
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