Plane Crashed Two Miles From Airport On Moonless Night
A 54-year-old man returning home to Santa Fe, NM was killed
Monday evening, when his Pilatus PC-12/47E crashed near Santa Fe
Municipal Airport (SAF.)
KOB-4 reports Richard Gardner was the pilot and sole person
onboard the single-engine turboprop, which crashed around 10:20 pm
local time, approximately two miles from the runway.
"I saw the airplane and I thought it was really low, and it was
weird that I saw it falling down, and I don’t know if it was
already on fire because I could see the plane and it just flipped
over and just came straight down and exploded," said witness Irene
Herrera.
Witnesses described a small explosion as the plane impacted
hills west of the airport, followed by a much larger blast.
Wreckage was scattered throughout a roughly quarter-mile area.
The accident plane was manufactured in 2008, and was among the
first "PC-12 NG" models delivered in the United States. The NG
(shown below) sports an uprated PT6A-67P turbine powerplant, and a
full Honeywell Primus Apex glass panel. The type received joint FAA
and EASA certification in April.
Online flight tracking data shows the accident aircraft was on
an IFR flight plan from Teterboro, NJ. Gardner diverted to Lubbock,
TX -- presumably for fuel -- before continuing on to SAF. The
accident flight was the third leg shown for the day; N606SL started
out from Akron, OH early Monday morning, bound for Teterboro.
Santa Fe County Sheriff Greg Solano said Gardner did not radio a
distress call. The Class D tower at SAF was closed at the time of
the accident.
Conditions were clear at the time of the crash, with little to
no ambient light available from the New Moon. SAF lies southwest of
the city, and the area surrounding the airport is largely
unincorporated.
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 606SL
Make/Model: PC12 Description: PC-12,
Eagle
Date: 09/30/2008 Time: 0440
Event Type: Accident Highest Injury:
Fatal Mid Air: N Missing:
N
Damage: Destroyed
LOCATION
City: SANTA FE State: NM Country:
US
DESCRIPTION
AIRCRAFT CRASHED UNDER UNKNOWN CIRCUMSTANCES, THE ONE PERSON
ON BOARD WAS
FATALLY INJURED, 4 MILES FROM SANTA FE, NM
INJURY DATA Total
Fatal: 1
# Crew: 1 Fat:
1 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat:
0 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
# Grnd:
Fat: 0 Ser:
0 Min:
0 Unk:
WEATHER: 0453Z SAF 11007 10SM CLR 16/01 A3044
OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase:
Unknown Operation: OTHER
FAA FSDO: ALBUQUERQUE, NM
(SW01)
Entry date: 09/30/2008