Warbird Information Exchange

I'm just the messenger, if its been posted (I didn't see it) then please delete it.

Anyone have a picture of the airplane?

Mark H

T-34 Crash in FL on Sat 11/5/11 2 dead

A Daytona Beach man and a Port Orange man were killed in an airplane crash in Levy County Saturday, a press release from the Levy County Sheriff's Office said today.

Mike Fuller, 47,of Port Orange and Ken Terry, 74, of Daytona Beach, both died when their plane crashed near Morriston, a rural city in Levy County, the news release said. The plane, a 1956 Beach Craft T-34, crashed while attempting to take off at a private air strip in Levy County, said Jay Grooms, a detective with the Levy County Sheriff's Office.

The investigation was turned over today the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board, Grooms said.

The single engine fixed wing aircraft crashed about 4:45 p.m., Grooms said.

Terry was retired from Northwest Airlines with approximately 30 years of service and over 60 thousand hours of flight time. Fuller was a manager at Yelvington Jet Aviation, the report said.

Fuller was general manager for Yelvington Jet Aviation of Daytona Beach, said Conrad Yelvington, who is also a pilot.

The two men often flew out of Spruce Creek Fly-In, a small airstrip in Port Orange, Yelvington said.

Yelvington said today that the men were attending a flying event.

"It was a barbecue," Yelvington said.

The families have not decided when the memorial services or funeral arrangements will be, Yelvington said.

_________________
Fly safe or you get to meet me .......

N34KT... Found some pics....

Mark H

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Fly safe or you get to meet me .......

I was told today that the aircraft took off from a fairly short strip and the engine quit after take off. It went down in a wooded area. Not known yet why the engine quit.

60,000 hours! May he rest in peace. He certainly rung every bit of flying out in his lifetime.

It sickens me every time one goes down. May they rest in peace.

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When you meet a Veteran shake his or her hand and thank them, they earned your freedom.
I plan to fly in as many B-25 as possible be fore I die! B-25 for ever!!!

My deepest respects to them both, but 60,000 hours sounds like a mistake. That's 60 years at 1000 hours per year. Most airline pilots who retire after a career, with flying on the side as well, might get to 30, maybe 35.

A reporter's goof, I think.

Very sad, nonetheless.

Dave

No engine failure. Aerobatic maneuver on Take off followed by low altitude stall.


NTSB Identification: ERA12FA062
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, November 05, 2011 in Williston, FL
Aircraft: BEECH D-45, registration: N34KT
Injuries: 2 Fatal.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

On November 5, 2011, about 1644 eastern daylight time, a Beech D-45 (T-34B), N34KT, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain following a loss of control during initial climb at Wings Field Airport (96FL), Williston, Florida. The certificated flight instructor and private pilot were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the instructional flight conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91, destined for Spruce Creek Airport (7FL6), Daytona Beach, Florida.

According to witnesses, during the takeoff the airplane was observed to rotate and liftoff after a ground run of approximately 400 feet. It then leveled off and accelerated. After reaching the end of the runway the airplane was then observed to pitch up "aggressively" to a 60 to 70 degree nose up climb attitude, climb momentarily, then yaw and roll to the left while pitching nose down. It then turned back to the right. The nose of the airplane then oscillated up and down and the airplane "fell like a rock", disappearing behind trees.

Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane came to rest after impacting left wing first in a shallow nose down pitch attitude after striking the top of a tree. There was no debris path.

Examination of the wreckage did not reveal any evidence of preimpact failure of the airplane or engine. The landing gear was in the retracted position and the wing flaps were in the up position. All trims were neutral, and control continuity was established from the control surfaces to the flight controls in the cockpit. Fuel was present in all fuel tanks.

Examination of the propeller and engine revealed that the propeller had separated from its mounting flange. All of the blades exhibited s-bending, leading edge gouging, and chordwise scratching. A portion of a tree located next to the propeller also exhibited a 45 degree cut indicative of a propeller strike. Examination of the engine revealed that it had separated from its mounts. Fuel was present in the fuel pump and flow divider. The spark plugs appeared normal and both magnetos produced spark at all towers.

According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, the flight instructor held an airline transport pilot certificate with multiple ratings including airplane single-engine land. His most recent FAA first-class medical certificate was issued on June 29, 2011. On that date, he reported that he had accrued 40,000 total hours of flight experience.

According to FAA records, the private pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land. His most recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued on December 1, 2010. On that date, he reported that he had accrued 235 total hours of flight experience.

I believe the absolute all-time record is something like 56,000 hours, and it was some pilot who flew pretty much every day all day, maybe a cropduster.

Also, somebody referred to Spruce Creek as a "small airstrip." Hardly. I flew in to visit a friend when I had a Comanche, and I believe Travolta's pilot used to go in and out with the 707 until residents told him it was too noisy.

Spruce Creek has a 4000 ft runway, hardly capable of handling a 707. It was Travolta's G2 that people objected too.