Zone

Crash of a Cessna T207A Skywagon in Mt Steens: 6 killed

Date & Time: Aug 21, 1986 at 1015 LT
Registration:
N73569
Flight Phase:
Survivors:
No
Site:
Schedule:
McDermitt - Burns
MSN:
207-0603
YOM:
1981
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
5
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
6
Captain / Total flying hours:
14106
Captain / Total hours on type:
13.00
Aircraft flight hours:
1235
Circumstances:
Although low altitude flight within the gorge was not in accordance with the mission profile the pilot entered the canyon and proceeded upslope towards rising terrain. 87% of the pilot's extensive flight experience was in helicopter aircraft and he had acquired an estimated total of only 13 hours in make/model at the time of the accident. The aircraft was slightly over its gross weight at the time of the accident and high density altitude conditions existed. During the pilot's attempt to reverse direction at the end of the gorge the aircraft stalled and a loss of control followed. A stall/spin maneuver resulted placing the aircraft in an uncontrolled descent into the terrain. All six occupants were killed.
Probable cause:
Occurrence #1: loss of control - in flight
Phase of operation: maneuvering - turn to reverse direction
Findings
1. (c) in-flight planning/decision - improper - pilot in command
2. (f) terrain condition - rising
3. (f) weather condition - high density altitude
4. (f) clearance - misjudged - pilot in command
5. (f) aircraft weight and balance - exceeded - pilot in command
6. (c) airspeed (vs) - not maintained - pilot in command
7. (f) lack of total experience in type of aircraft - pilot in command
8. Stall/spin
----------
Occurrence #2: in flight collision with terrain/water
Phase of operation: descent - uncontrolled
Final Report:

Crash of a Rockwell Grand Commander 690B in Burns: 3 killed

Date & Time: Jan 7, 1981 at 1600 LT
Operator:
Registration:
N81521
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Klamath Falls - Burns
MSN:
690-11351
YOM:
1976
Location:
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
1
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
3
Captain / Total flying hours:
2177
Captain / Total hours on type:
506.00
Circumstances:
On approach to Burns Airport, the twin engine aircraft crashed in unknown circumstances. All three occupants were killed.
Probable cause:
The exact cause of the accident could not be determined.
Final Report:

Crash of a Piper PA-61 Aerostar (Ted Smith 601P) in Burns: 1 killed

Date & Time: Aug 12, 1977 at 1150 LT
Operator:
Registration:
N9578Q
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
La Verne - La Grande
MSN:
61-368-117
YOM:
1977
Location:
Crew on board:
1
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
1
Circumstances:
En route from La Verne to La Grande, while in cruising altitude, a wing separated and detached. Out of control, the airplane entered a spin and crashed in flames. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.
Probable cause:
Airframe failure in flight and uncontrolled descent after the pilot exceeded designed stress limits of aircraft. The following findings were reported:
- Wings spars,
- Overload failure,
- Separation in flight,
- Wings separated.
Final Report:

Crash of a Boeing B-52D-75-DO Stratofortress near Burns: 5 killed

Date & Time: Jun 23, 1959 at 1200 LT
Type of aircraft:
Operator:
Registration:
56-0591
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Seattle - Seattle
MSN:
17274
YOM:
1956
Location:
Crew on board:
5
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
5
Circumstances:
At 11:05 a.m. on Tuesday, June 23, 1959, Tommy’s Tigator took off from Boeing Field for an experimental low-level flight test. Five employees of the Boeing Airplane Company were on board the B-52D: Lewis E. Moore, commander/pilot; Joseph Q. Keller, copilot; Gerald G. Green, navigator; Charles K. McDaniel and Neil Johnson, flight-test engineers. The aircraft had been making test runs over Eastern Washington, Oregon, and Idaho since April 10, 1959, and was loaded with special electronic equipment for measuring stresses on the airframe and flight surfaces. The bomber was scheduled to fly at lower than 500 feet above the ground on an elliptical course from The Dalles, Oregon, to Malheur Lake, Burns, and back to Walla Walla, Washington, at near maximum speed of 638 miles-per-hour. At 11:30 a.m., Tommy’s Tigator radioed that it was over The Dalles and preparing to descend for the low-level test flight. No further reports were heard from the pilot after it passed the checkpoint. Leslie Heinz, a lineman for the Harney County Rural Electric Cooperative, was an eyewitness to the accident. He was working with a crew on power lines in a remote area approximately 35 miles west of Burns and three miles from the crash site. At about 12:00 noon, he spotted the B-52 flying southeast approximately 300 feet above the desert floor when it suddenly crashed. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all five crew members were killed:
Crew:
Lewis E. Moore, pilot,
Joseph Quentin Keller, copilot,
Gerald G. Green, navigator,
Neil Johnson, flight engineer,
Charles Kenneth McDaniel, flight engineer.
Source: http://www.historylink.org/File/10063
Probable cause:
The investigation by Air Force and Boeing experts concluded the accident was caused by the catastrophic failure of the horizontal stabilizer (tail plane), affecting the B-52’s longitudinal stability. The plane was not designed for the excessive turbulence of high-speed, low-level flight and began to disintegrate. Minus the horizontal stabilizer, the nose of the plane pitched sharply upward and it stalled, struck a knoll and exploded. At an altitude of 500 feet, there was virtually no chance for the crew to escape.
Final Report:

Crash of a Douglas SC-47D in Burns: 7 killed

Date & Time: Sep 24, 1955
Operator:
Registration:
43-16145
Flight Phase:
Flight Type:
Survivors:
No
Schedule:
Selfridge - Reno
MSN:
20611
YOM:
1944
Location:
Crew on board:
7
Crew fatalities:
Pax on board:
0
Pax fatalities:
Other fatalities:
Total fatalities:
7
Circumstances:
Enroute from Selfridge AFB, Michigan, to Reno-Stead Airport, the crew encountered poor weather conditions and lost control of the airplane that crash near Burns. All seven crew members were killed.