Corporate Air Caravan Crash 1 dead

[WrightAvia]

One killed in cargo plane crash near Cody




scfonho

By SARAH COOKE

Associated Press Writer

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - A small cargo plane crashed into a lake on the outskirts of Cody in northern Wyoming on Wednesday, killing the pilot, the Federal Aviation Administration said.

The Cessna 208 Caravan, operated for FedEx by Corporate Air in Billings, Mont., crashed into Alkali Lake at 8:51 a.m. The pilot, Donald Rhodes, 37, of Casper, was the only person on board, Corporate Air spokesman Curt Bourg said.

''It ended up in a lake north of the airport upside down,'' FAA spokesman Mike Fergus said.

Wyoming Highway Patrol Sgt. Steve Townsend said the plane first crashed on U.S.

''It was overcast, raining and snowing at the time,'' Townsend said. ''When it hit the highways there was about 2 inches of slush on (the road). I don't think he was trying to land on the highway because he landed upside down.''

Bourg said the plane apparently fell short when approaching Runway 4 at Yellowstone Regional Airport. The cause was under investigation.

The plane was carrying an unknown type of cargo on a daily route from Casper to Cody. It was loaded at about 50 percent of its weight capacity, Bourg said.

Rhodes had flown commercial planes for more than 10 years had an ''exemplary'' safety record. He had been with Corporate Air for three years, Bourg said.

''This is a difficult time and our thoughts and prayers are with the family of this fellow employee,'' he said.

Yellowstone Regional Airport deferred all comment to Cody police, who said in a release the airport was closed for about an hour after the crash but had reopened.

National Transportation Safety Board investigator Arnold Scott was en route to the scene from Denver and was expected later Wednesday, officials said.

Founded in 1981, Corporate Air maintains and operates freight facilities in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, North Dakota, Utah, Hawaii, the Philippines, San Juan and Vietnam, according to the company's Web site.

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[Heavy_D_Driver]

I saw the airplane today.

I flew a trip up to COD today and saw the Caravan. The airplane was laying on its back up against the shore of a small lake that is about 300 yards from the threshold of runway 4. The cockpit and engine had departed the airplane, but the rest of the fuselage, wings, and tail were intact. (I never saw where the cockpit or engine ended up, but there were pieces of the windshield and cowling strewn across the road that runs between the airport and the lake.) When the captain and I were looking at the wreckage the NTSB haden't arrived yet, just the local and state police and some Corporate Air company officials were at the accident site. It was a pretty sad scene.

 

[WrightAvia]

It was sad news for us guys also. Hate to see a brother end up that way.

 

[jergar999]

********************************************************************************
** Report created 10/31/2003 Record 5 **
********************************************************************************

IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 791FE Make/Model: C208 Description: 208 Caravan 1, (Super)Cargomaster, Grand
Date: 10/29/2003 Time: 1600

Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: Fatal Mid Air: N Missing: N
Damage: Destroyed

LOCATION
City: CODY State: WY Country: US

DESCRIPTION
CORPORATE AIR FLIGHT CPT8773, PART 135 AIR CARGO, WAS IFR FROM CASPER,
WYOMING (CPR) TO YELLOWSTONE REGIONAL AIRPORT (COD). AIRCRAFT WAS HELD AT
THE CODY VOR (COD) FROM 1519Z TO 1537Z. AT 1537Z THE AIRCRAFT WAS CLEARED
FOR THE APPROACH, RADAR SERVICE WAS TERMINATED, AND INSTRUCTED TO CHANGE TO
THE ADVISORY FREQUENCY. AT APPROXIMATELY 1601Z, CPR AFSS CALLED THE SECTOR
CONTROLLER AND NOTIFIED HIM THAT THE APT MANAGER AT CODY SAID A CARAVAN HAD
CRASHED NORTH OF THE AIRPORT. CODY, WY

INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 1
# Crew: 1 Fat: 1 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:

WEATHER: COD 291555Z 00000KT 1SM BKN002 OVC010 01/M02 A2944 RMK A01 -SN



OTHER DATA

Departed: (CPR) CASPER, WY Dep Date: 10/29/2003 Dep. Time: 1402
Destination: (COD) CODY, WY Flt Plan: IFR Wx Briefing: U
Last Radio Cont: CODY VOR
Last Clearance: CLRD FOR APCH

FAA FSDO: CASPER, WY (NM04) Entry date: 10/30/2003 #

I met this guy once in CPR, it's really sad. Cody has three approaches,

VOR or GPS-A (701-1)
GPS-B (1002-1.25)
RNAV 22 (1188-1.25)

 

[WrightAvia]

Initial speculation is that ice was not a direct factor.

 

[CMH Floater]

Ice not a factor on a Caravan in winter time?

 

[metrodriver]

quote:WEATHER: COD 291555Z 00000KT 1SM BKN002 OVC010 01/M02 A2944 RMK A01 -SN

Above weather report sounds like the perfect set up for structural icing. It was snowing so there was definately a thick layer of below freezing clouds. He also had to hold for 18 minutes, altitude unknown (in the freezing clouds?).
According to the first report he landed upside down.
I don't know, but this whole story has tail plane icing written all over it.
And the caravan is very susceptible to it.

This is just my own opinion. Hopefully the NTSB will find the true cause.

 

[WrightAvia]

quote:WEATHER: COD 291555Z 00000KT 1SM BKN002 OVC010 01/M02 A2944 RMK A01 -SN

Above weather report sounds like the perfect set up for structural icing. It was snowing so there was definately a thick layer of below freezing clouds. He also had to hold for 18 minutes, altitude unknown (in the freezing clouds?).
According to the first report he landed upside down.
I don't know, but this whole story has tail plane icing written all over it.
And the caravan is very susceptible to it.

This is just my own opinion. Hopefully the NTSB will find the true cause.

Take a look at the weather again...and tell me if you'd be executing a circling approach at cody, wy.

 

[rettofly]

Take a look at the weather again...and tell me if you'd be executing a circling approach at cody, wy.

Good catch. Not with 2BKN and a 700 ft ceiling required for the lowest approach.

 

[100-1/2]

Cody Approaches

As is often the case in this part of the country, ONLY one straight-in approach and two circling (RNAV/GPS 22. VOR-A and GPS-B) A/C likely not authorized and/or equipped with GPS [approaches].

Speculation:

Held while waiting for vis to come up to shoot the approach [VOR/GPS-A](storm blowing through? Metar archive would tell.) All the while collecting ice. When a van driver is proactive and does everything right, he/she can last for a while in the ice. He spent too, long holding.

No one can say they never cheated a little on a circling approach {with a 'modified CONTACT' procedure}. When you are familiar with the terrain and obstacles and can see and avoid them while staying in the protective boundary for the circling procedure, you can get away with it. I fear what precipitated our unfortunate brother's demise are some key considerations everyone can reflect on and learn from, not just the van drivers:

Altitude and airspeed are your friends when collecting ice on any airframe. Altitudes give you options while airspeed aides in shedding MOST of the Ice, NOT ALL OF IT! A secondary range of benefits from altitude.

Cody's Elevation is 5098' and the MAP for VOR-A is a climbing left turn to the VOR 6 miles away and UP TO 8000' where you enter the HOLD and stay within the 10 mile ring from the FIX. After getting down and doing a little cirling maneuver to find/recapture the Airport, at the MAP, you are expected to pack all that ice and the cargo, crew and fuel compliment back up to 8000' in six miles and Hold. Ain't happenin' in the van nor many other aircraft and particularly those from the normally asperated family. I have been here in a very similar situation and would reckin' many others, too, that just don't talk about it or fess up to those best suited to help in this situation(ATC sittin' in that warm little cubicle drinking that hot apple cider while smoking a cigarette and reading STUFF Magazine as they direct traffic on their boob tube). They are a valuable resource that would really rather do the work to get you somewhere safe than wake some tired old sherriff out of bed to go find your wrecked airplane. OKAY OFF THE SOAPBOX NOW... by leaving the fix and shooting the approach, all "outs" were effectively closed and he was committed to 'making' the field. Everything else is undeterminable as I believe Cody is in a non-radar environment below 7000'. The only facts will be the direction, orientation and velocity at the unplanned termination of the flight.

Guys and Gals, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, Don't Burn doughnuts in the sky waiting in these conditions under Focused 'wanting/longing' for just the right reports to get the weather you need to "go take a look". GO TO YOUR ALTERNATE, get some GAS and a cup of COFFEE. Wait it out on the ground rather than sweating it out in the air.

I would recommend if you are fearful of reprimand from your company, get a copy of the NTSB accident report for this and others like it. IF confronted by your company, pull these accident recaps from your flight bag and present them and excerpts from your ops specs and FAR's dealing with roles and responsibilities of the Pilot In Command.

I know it is still new and fresh in people's minds with all the more recent attention it has received. But, Tail Plane Icing is addressed in the Caravan Training programs. Great detail in training comprises of avoiding configurations that develop such a condition and Many simulator programs have tremendously authentic scenarios for extreme icing encounters and a malfunctioning tail boot situation. Witness accounts and the crash near a lake lend to a likely finding for disorientation and loss of control. There is no depiction for a lake on my Cody IAP's except that which is 4 to 5 miles west of the field and outside of the protected boundary for the circling maneuver. And, it is difficult for tailplane ice to lead to an inverted condition. The American Eagle Crash of more than a decade ago, Flew into the ground as the crew attempted to break the perceived stall.

Anyone who has flown in a fierce winter snow knows how deceptive, blowing heavy snow can be while you are peering out the window trying to maintain visual contact with/find the airport on a circling maneuver and at night. Also, there is not a lot of lights in wyoming and would imagine fewer in Cody. Limited visability and low ceilings would further hinder him whilst being committed to finding the airport and landing likely solidified this unfortunate outcome.

On a kind of light hearted note, I did a little research that is revealing news for van drivers and bad news for everyone else. Since 2000, for every winter misfortune such as this and involving a Caravan, there were 4 other misfotunes of other aircraft on average. All were Turbine or High Performance Twins. I just don't see why the van gets such a bad rap.
Lets do something really wild... How about actually flying to an alternate sometime just to remind ourselves that it can and should be done. Randomly pick a non-critical or part 91 leg and double the weather minimums for your operation and/or the approach. If you get there and it is below those minimums and aint's coming up in the next ten minutes, deviate to your alternate. Buy yourself a cup of coffee at your alternate's FBO and check out Jules Asner on the tube while you wait out the weather. If she is in town, check into a hotel room with Jules Asner. You never know what you could be missing at your alternate!

Seriously, Lets not have those 4 other aircraft fulfill this trend this year.


An Instrument approach is there IN CASE the weather is Bad...

A Missed approach Procedure is there IN CASE the weather is really bad...

The objective to an IAP is to get you INTO the airport...

The objective to a MAP is to get you AWAY from the airport...

An Alternate Airport is there so that you can call the whole thing off...

...And just go get Jules! Before you sweat or mess yourself.