Airplane Parks In Power Lines.......

Admin wrote:I heard that break at the top of the hour on the radio shortly after it happened. That pilot is absolutely screwed unless he can prove he had a medical issue or there was a failure within the plane (which I would imagine there would need to be a record of him radioing in the emergency). It knocked out the power for quite a few people. Fortunately, fault protection at the substation(s) must've worked properly.

There is a reason for limiting low altitude flying to no less that 2,000 feet.
So, you don't hit high power lines, wind generators, and radio towers.

Though some of that stuff might be higher than 2,00 feet up.
If you take the Drone test (for a UAS) as I have, it is close to the same test as getting your pilot's license.
And I have taken and passed the privet pilot's license (years ago).

WaPo wrote:Goldstein said the pilot was using instruments onboard to navigate the approach to the airport when the plane became entangled in high-voltage lines while making contact with two power line towers. Experienced pilots have federal approval to fly with instruments at night and in difficult weather.

If it were visual flight reference (VFR), then, he would be fully responsible for the hit. However, if he was following his instruments, doesn't that mean that there was an air traffic controller guiding him in? And, in following those instructions, led him into that power tower?

There perhaps is more to the picture than simply placing full blame on the pilot himself.

I really like this guy's channel:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXVYa8kVDdI

Today, NTSB Preliminary Report is available. When I clicked on a latest news article made available today,
Fox5: NTSB releases preliminary report into Gaithersburg small plane crash

Fox 5 photo.

Another window opened automatically allowing me to download the NTSB PDF. It states,

NTSB Preliminary Report wrote:The pilot and passenger were seriously injured, and the airplane was substantially damaged. During a conversation with 911 call center personnel while the airplane remained suspended in the tower, the pilot reported, “I got down a little lower than I should have... I thought I was closer to the airport than I was...We could see the ground, but we couldn’t see in front.” After several hours, the airplane was secured to the tower, and the occupants safely egressed with the assistance of rescue and utility personnel.

Report states that his instruments were tested several months ago and found to be in acceptable accuracy limits. Their other checks on engine show evidence it was in mechanical sound condition with fuel systems properly functioning. So, in this case it appears that the pilot relied on his own insights instead of his gauges and navigational aids and Air Traffic Controller explicit instructions.

I gather that had he placed his full faith in the systems and training versus his gut level instincts, he would have had another uneventful landing, and another quiet meal at home, along with his passenger.

I heard news correspondence report that one or both of the two occupants on board, suffered from hypothermia before they could be brought to safety. Lucky they are; not to have fried.

roddie wrote:I heard news correspondence report that one or both of the two occupants on board, suffered from hypothermia before they could be brought to safety. Lucky they are; not to have fried.

With cabin integrity compromised by the crash along with their probably not fully clothed with jackets and long johns or access to blankets, and no cabin heat with engine off, they suffered similarly to someone in a car in very cold weather with windows cracked open. You are right, they are lucky not to have been electrocuted. Some of those high power lines can carry as much as 450,000 volts of electricity, equivalent to a lightning bolt.