Mon, May 23, 2022
Pilotless Airplane Crash Lands Near House Under Construction
During flight training, to demonstrate the inherent stability characteristics that have been designed into most light training aircraft, your certified flight instructor (CFI) would have had you momentarily cease providing control inputs so you can observe for yourself, its tendency to return to a particular attitude of flight.
Earlier this month, the self-flying part was evident when a Bellanca Citabria, a single-engine tail-dragger airplane departed the Schlenker Airport (CFZ3) some 3 miles south of the city of Medicine Hat in Alberta, Canada around 8:30pm and crash landed into a house that was under construction, near the 14th hole of a golf-course in the city of Medicine Hat. The fire-dispatch audio can be accessed on youtube. There was some debate about who would be investigating and whether the scene should be preserved or cleaned up.
The airplane was apparently undergoing maintenance by its owner, and once the engine started, he said “it just took right off”. Other eyewitnesses reported seeing the aircraft circle one of the neighborhoods for almost 20 minutes, low enough for observers to see that no one was at the controls, before it crashed into a mound and came to rest against the house! The airplane owner reached out and apologized to the homeowner. Apparently, the damage was minor, the kids got some selfies and had a cool story to share, but most importantly, no one was injured in the process.
This is almost akin to an episode of Ripleys’ believe it or not! But we digress. The emergency responders rushed to the scene following calls reporting the incident, and the Canadian Transportation Safety Board (TSB) will be investigating.
More News
"Fly-by-wire flight, coupled with additional capability that are being integrated into ALFA, provide a great foundation for Bell to expand on its autonomous capabilities. This airc>[...]
Hold Procedure A predetermined maneuver which keeps aircraft within a specified airspace while awaiting further clearance from air traffic control. Also used during ground operatio>[...]
Aero Linx: B-21 Raider The B-21 Raider will be a dual-capable penetrating strike stealth bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions. The B-21 will form th>[...]
Also: Virgin Galactic, B-29 Doc to Allentown, Erickson Fire-Fighters Bought, FAA Reauthorization After dealing with a big letdown after the unexpected decision by Skyreach to disco>[...]
Also: Skydio Chief, Uncle Sam Sues, Dash 7 magniX, OR UAS Accelerator US Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall was given a turn around the patch in the 'X-62A Variable In-flight>[...]