In flight breakup of piper, three dead in NJ

[FN FAL]

http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/files/photos/C/c060c1e3-694a-461b-8981-ca5370029cb9.html?SITE=WIMIL&SECTION=US&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

[Lear Wanna Be]

Uh oh!!! Here we go. No T-storms around and an in flight break-up. New ADs are on the way. Aging fleet now an issue ironically after this month's AOPA magazine had an article about how it does not pertain to light GA aircraft.

This kind of stuff seems to happen rather often in NJ.

 

[FN FAL]

Now they are saying it's four.

STAFFORD TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) -- A small plane broke apart in flight Wednesday, narrowly missing homes before crashing in the woods and killing four people on board, witnesses and authorities said.

Debris rained on houses and yards as the single-engine Piper dropped out of the clouds, passing over a major beach-access road before crashing. Nobody on the ground was hurt.

The victims - two men and two women - were found strapped in their seats.

Paul Denet said that six pieces of the plane fell in his yard and that a wing was floating in the lagoon behind his house.

Carla Gallo, co-owner of a gift shop in the neighborhood, said she heard a whining sound and then a big pop.

"You just saw all these yellow and white pieces falling," Gallo said. "We didn't see the big part of the plane. We just saw the little pieces."

The plane was registered to Aviron Aviation LLC in North Plainfield, according to Jim Peters, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.

Phone listings for the company could not immediately be found.

 

[Amish RakeFight]

Any know the statistics of inflight breakups where there wasnt any indication of structual limits being exceeded?

 

[leardawg]

I can just see tomorrows' local newspaper headline:

"ACCIDENT AIRPLANE NOT ON FAA FLIGHT PLAN. PLANE NOT OUTFITTED WITH BLACK BOX OR COLLISION WARNING DEVICE". :erm:

My condolences to the victims' families.

 

[navigator72]

God bless all those affected by this tragedy

 

[Hold West]

Any know the statistics of inflight breakups where there wasnt any indication of structual limits being exceeded?

I don't know about that, but I'd guess that this was more likely due to loss of control in instrument conditions causing the aircraft to break up in flight. The weather was IFR in the area at the time:

[FONT=Monospace,Courier]KACY 311554Z 12007KT 10SM OVC009 21/17 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP227 T02110172[/FONT]
[FONT=Monospace,Courier]KACY 311454Z 09008KT 10SM OVC007 21/17 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP227 T02060167 53000[/FONT]
[FONT=Monospace,Courier]KACY 311354Z 09007KT 10SM BKN007 20/17 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP225 T02000167

One of the stories makes reference to the aircaft "dropping out of the clouds".

Of the four individuals listed as victims, only one comes up with a pilot certificate - a private pilot without an instrument rating.

All this is purely circumstantial evidence, of course.


[/FONT]

 

[gkrangers]

Nasty fog hugged the jersey shore ALL day today.

 

[desert pilot]

Israeli origin

All over the news in Israel-reporting in-flight explosion.Of course it looks more like the other posters hint-insrument conditions-in flight break up.

 

[gkrangers]

This made Israeli news? Was the pilot Israeli?