Not long ago we discussed the tragic crash of the Beech Super King Air which took place shortly after departing Long Beach Airport the morning of March 16, 2011. Readers will recall that this well built twin engine airplane apparently tried to return to the airport but crashed short of the field.

Since our last discussion, it appears that the condition of the sole survivor of the crash, Michael Jensen of Long Beach, is improving. We wish him the best and hope that he is able to recover fully.

From a legal standpoint, having a survivor of a crash puts the matter into a different perspective. Tragically, most aircrashes of this type are simply not survivable. In those cases, investigators and forensic experts are forced to piece together the evidence as best they can in order to determine the “probable cause” of the crash. But things are different when there is a survivor. Many times the survivor will recall the sequence of events or what the pilot may have said or done prior to the crash. This can be invaluable to investigators when they put together the puzzle pieces to get a picture of what really happened, and why.

In our last discussion we mentioned the importance of tower controller tapes. If the pilot in this case had a chance to make a transmission to the tower, this could shed some light on the nature of the pilot’s situation. But pilots are taught from the get-go the mantra: “Aviate, Navigate, Communicate.” In other words, flying the airplane and keeping it under control is far more important than talking on a microphone. The point is: if the pilot of the King Air was not able to transmit to the tower, this makes the testimony of the sole survivor all the more important, as he, and only he, will be in a position to say what happened in the moments preceding the crash.

For the time being, however, before any legal proceedings start, we wish Mr. Jensen and his family the best, with the hope that his recovery is both speedy and complete.

For more information see Aviation Accidents.

The fiery crash of a private plane in Long Beach on March 16, 2011, claimed the lives of Tom Dean, Jeff Berger, Bruce Krall, Mark Bixby and one other person. The airplane, a twin engine Beechcraft Super King Air 200, had just departed but was circling in an apparent attempt to land when it crashed in a fireball on the field at Long Beach Airport.

The King Air is a very well regarded aircraft. It is a solid, twin engine airplane capable of safely carrying passengers and cargo over long distances. So what happened the morning of March 16, 2011? The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is still investigating the situation, but one possible cause could be what pilots call a “VMC Roll.”

To understand this concept, bear in mind that an airplane such as the King Air with two engines produces thrust from both wings. So long as the thrust is equal, the pilot can control which way the plane travels. But if the thrust becomes unequal, things can quickly unravel and get out of control. If one engine quits, the pilot has precious little time to identify the problem and apply the correct control inputs to keep the plane flying.

All pilots learn certain airspeeds for the planes that they fly. For example, on one end of the spectrum is VNE: Velocity Never Exceed. On the other end of the spectrum is VMC: Velocity Minimum Controllable. This is the specific airspeed below which a twin engine airplane is going to be uncontrollable if an engine quits. Both VNE and VMC are important numbers for pilots to have etched in their hard drives before they ever fly.

The most dangerous time for a twin engine airplane to have an engine quit is on take off. The airplane is much closer to stall speed, and there is little altitude in which to correct things. At that low a speed, if an engine quits and the pilot does not keep the airspeed at or above VMC, what will happen is that the airplane will quickly roll over inverted and crash. There is literally no way to avoid this fate if your airspeed is below VMC and one engine gives up the ghost.

Is this what happened to the souls aboard the ill-fated King Air? Time will tell. Witnesses have said that the plane appeared to be turning back to the airport. Did the pilot experience a problem with the airplane which caused him to try to make it back? Tapes of air traffic controllers are preserved after such an accident, to try to see what communications took place between the control tower and the pilot. It is also possible that the pilot had his hands full, and did not make a “Mayday” call to the tower.

This accident was a real tragedy, causing the deaths of a number of persons highly regarded in the Long Beach community. Follow the NTSB website for details as to its investigation. At some point in time the NTSB will release its “Probable Cause Report,” which will opine as to the cause of this accident. In the meantime, Godspeed to the families of the victims of this accident.