Cessna 172 down in ORL, caught on tape

[fastandlow]

Anyone think the pilot may have seen people on the fairways???? Really think a golfcourse would be empty on a nice afternoon in Orlando?

A Cessna glider doesn't make much noise... the golfers wouldn't have heard him coming. He might have done the best thing for the people on the ground. I've never had to put one down off the field, but I have had a couple of very expedited downwind-get out of my way - landings. Things happen fast.

thoughts with his family and friends.

 

[EagleRJ]

Dude, what do you think I meant when I said slip it in, slip is full rudder and point the nose down, it will work a lot better than fish tailing because you keep the side of the plane in the relative wind instead of changing sides in a fishtail.

Specifically, a forward slip is what you were referring to. Full rudder, opposite aileron, and point the nose down to maintain airspeed. I know that's the commonly accepted method. I was just wondering if anyone had heard of the fishtail technique being used today. I think it used to be taught and fell out of favor. I don't see how it would be more effective than a forward slip- it just adds complexity.

Blaming the pilot for "passing up" the golf course is ridiculous. I'm sure he was headed for it. Maybe he was too high, maybe he saw people on the fairway, or maybe in the heat of the moment he just pushed the nose over to lose altitude and was too fast to make it. You'll never know how you'll handle an engine failure over a city until it happens to you. Sometimes people run out of options, and they're left with aiming for the softest thing they see within a very small area.

Blue skies, Dan...

 

[FL000]

Looks like he veered right at the last second to avoid hitting the van, whose driver probably didn't see the plane. Selfless act if you ask me.

 

[jbDC9]

Looks like he veered right at the last second to avoid hitting the van, whose driver probably didn't see the plane. Selfless act if you ask me.

It kinda looks like the left wing caught a power line and was sliding along it, caused it to veer right...

Anyone think the pilot may have seen people on the fairways???? Really think a golfcourse would be empty on a nice afternoon in Orlando?

But, wouldn't you rather take your chances on a golf course with a few people on it rather that a street with powerlines and lotsa traffic?

And now, I shall shut up about it.

 

[Flechas]

Guys, leave them alone, nobody knows whatwent inside that plane, i'm sure they did their best.
Get a life, i'm sure ones that critisize the most are the worst pilots.
My thoughts and prayers with are with the family if the pilot.

 

[Doug]

I cant believe you guys are jumping all over this guy. I know relatively nothing about flying, but I do know things happen, and people generally make the best decision possible given the circumstances and the narrow window of time.

For instance my uncle lost power in a single engine, and found a roadway with trees on both side to land on. There was one car who happened to b e in the path...he probably could have avoided them, but was afraid that he may cause them to have an accident, and potential put their lives in danger(all of this went on in his mind after he was below the treeline and there was no turning back...the car came into view after it was too late to pick another spot), so he ditched it off to the side clipping the trees and managed to break a lot of bones.

Point is you do what you have to do(the pilot probably thought the golfcourse was too high risk), and make the best decision you can at the moment. Whatever happened, this pilot made the best decision he could, and unfortunately paid the ultimate price. Respect the man, don't degrade him.

 

[rumpletumbler]

I'd like to sound noble but if you guys are ever playing golf and it looks like a good place to set it down you'd better get the hell out of the way cause I ain't got no horn

 

[FN FAL]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/media/photo/2005-01/15809439.jpg

The orlando sentinel had a closeup of the wreckage.

 

[MXMiles]

Here is an article I found off another website. From the video I've seen its apparent the pilot was attempting to avoid traffic on the road.


ORLANDO, Fla. -- One man is dead and another is in fair condition after a private plane crashed at an Orlando golf course Tuesday afternoon.

The single-engine plane came down at Dubsdread Golf Course in College Park, WESH NewsChannel 2 reported.

Images from Chopper 2 showed the plane down along the side of Par Avenue. The plane crashed into a concrete pole next to the 17th hole, which is also next to the Tap Room, the golf course's restaurant.

The Cessna 172 had two pilots on board. Dan Lawlor, 33, was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center with critical injuries. He died during surgery Tuesday night, according to a spokesman for the Orlando Police Department.

Lawlor was a flight instructor for Showalter Flying Service.

Steve Schieber, 26, is in fair condition at ORMC. Schieber, who is also an employee at Showalter, is a commercial pilot with a lot of flying experience, police said. The two men had rented the Cessna for the afternoon.

On Tuesday afternoon, the pilot reported that his plane was losing oil pressure and told air traffic controllers that he was not going to make it to Orlando Executive Airport, its destination.

The pilot first said he was going to try to land at a field at Edgewater High School, but then he decided to try for Dubsdread. The plane crash landed at about 4:45 p.m. into live power lines.

Witnesses said the pilot used all of his flying abilities to avoid hitting the homes that sit just feet from the golf course.

"I think he did an excellent job trying to save other lives. How he didn't hit the cars is amazing," one witness said.

The plane is registered to Grady and Francis, an Orlando-based company.

Tom Stewart, the general manager of the golf course, told NewsChannel 2 that he and some bystanders ran out to the crash scene right after the accident and tried to pull the two men out of the plane. He said they were able to get one man pulled to the green, but emergency personnel had to pull the other man to safety.

Stewart said they did see some fuel leaking, but there was never a fire.

About 900 OUC customers were impacted immediately after the crash, but power has been restored to all but a few who live close to the crash site, according to a spokesman for the utility company. He expects power to be restored to all customers by 11 p.m.

A group of women were having a meeting at the Tap Room when the plane went down. They witnessed the entire crash from the restaurant's balcony. They said the plane was eerily quiet as it glided toward the 17th fairway. The hole has a very wide fairway if he could have made it over the wires.

One of the women said two people from the restaurant came running out with fire extinguishers because people were screaming that there was a gas leak.

"Somebody else climbed into the aircraft and pulled the guy out. Somebody took it upon themself to move this guy to save his life," one witness said.

She said everyone was aware of the downed power lines and some people were screaming, "Back away."

"He was able to give us his name and telephone number to call his family and his girlfriend. I made some calls, and she said, 'Please tell him that I love him.' So I ran to catch him to make sure that he did know that she loved him," another witness said.

 

[rchcfi]

I just walked into my hotel room, turned onto CNN, and saw this accident. I feel so bad for the pilot and his family. The thing that really got under my skin was the way the blond byatch newscaster ended the story. After showing the video, it cuts back to her and she says "Not bad for an amateur, I guess." with some sort of smugness. These newscasters need to take a sensitivity training course ASAP! Not to mention, I would like to think ALL pilots are professionals!


RCHCFI