Two Fatally Injured When 'Big Beautiful Doll' Went Down Earlier This Month

In the aftermath of any accident comes the cold analysis of what happened ... but that seems to be a bit more poignant when the accident involves a man like Jeff Pino and an airplane like Big Beautiful Doll.

The NTSB has released its preliminary report from that accident, which occurred on February 5, 2016, at about 1157 mountain standard time. Pino's North American F-51D, N551JP, sustained substantial damage when it impacted terrain about 6 miles southwest of Maricopa, Arizona. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91. The commercial pilot and a passenger, who was an airline transport pilot, were fatally injured. Visual (VMC) meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The local personal flight departed Stellar Airpark (P19), Chandler, Arizona earlier that morning, at an unknown time.

A witness located about 1 mile from the accident site reported observing the airplane in a nose down spiral about 1,500-2,000 feet above ground level, until it impacted the ground. Another witness located near the accident site stated that the airplane was in a dive and that he did not observe the airplane pull out of the descent.

Examination of the accident site by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), investigator-in-charge (IIC), revealed that all the major components of the airplane were located at the main wreckage site. A debris path extended from the forward part of the airplane about 150 feet and contained various debris including fragments of the canopy. A majority of the fuselage structure and wings were consumed by a post impact fire. The power lines located adjacent to the main wreckage were not damaged.

(Source: NTSB. Image from file)

FMI: www.ntsb.gov