Two people aboard a single-engine, two-place aircraft, were killed Saturday when it went down just 300 yards from the Boone County (AR) Regional Airport. There's no indication yet as to what caused the accident. Workers at a nearby softball complex said the aircraft appeared to be "dumping fuel" before it went down. They reported smelling avgas as they say it fell around them.

AOPA President Phil Boyer and senior staff this week told the National Transportation Safety Board members that the association can be a real asset to the NTSB when it has general aviation concerns. "Only one of the board members has any significant GA experience," said Boyer. "We wanted the other members to understand that there are often non-regulatory ways to improve safety, and that AOPA can help with pilot education." Boyer and AOPA Senior Vice President of Government and Technical Affairs Andy Cebula began by introducing the board members to AOPA members. They explained that AOPA is the world's largest civil aviation organization and that AOPA members account for some two thirds of the entire US pilot population.

Where are the safest skies in the world? Over Fort Worth (TX) and points west, according to FAA officials. The agency's southwest region has become one of the most accident-free operations in America. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports controllers at Alliance Airport, north of the city, have never experienced an accident in their 15 years of operation. At Meacham Field, there hasn't been an accident reported in nine years. "Knock on wood, we've been lucky," Meacham tower manager Gene Kasson said. "Anybody at any time, regardless of experience, can have an operational error. I don't know what it is about the region. I wish there was a magic potion you could take."

The NTSB says there are two reasons a Cessna 414 with a Riley Super-8 conversion crashed at Marshfield Municipal Airport (WI) two years ago: engine problems and pilot error. The Marshfield News Herald reports CFIs Mitchell Schier, 41, and Andrew Maly, 31, both of Marshfield, along with Michael Cervi, 30, of Marana (AZ), died in the crash. Shier was trying to land the aircraft after it started losing power in the left engine. The three were headed to Doniphan (MO) in the 1974 Cessna.