Ferry

At 1604 est, the aircraft departed Fort Wayne on a ferry flight. IFR conditions prevailed and the pilot had filed an IFR flight plan. While climbing after takeoff, the pilot passed his assigned altitude of 2,500 feet msl and flew to 4,200 feet. Also, he failed to turn to his initial assigned heading of 130°. He had problems contacting departure control as he was not on the assigned frequency. He reported problems with his heading indicator and his 'gyro'. Shortly after his last transmission, the aircraft left 4,200 feet msl and crashed in a steep dive. Before takeoff, the atp pilot reported he had flown all King Air aircraft and was currently flying the Beech 200. A review of his last log book revealed over 2,000 hours in the Beech 200, but showed no time in the Beech C90. A witness that reviewed the aircraft with the pilot before the flight believed he (the pilot) was very familiar with the aircraft systems. During an inspection of the wreckage, no evidence was found to verify a pre-impact malfunction or failure of the aircraft or engines. All instruments were destroyed. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.

After lift-off a flock of birds approached from left to right at about 400 feet. The pilot maneuvered the aircraft behind and above the birds in an attempt to avoid them. Both engines flamed out and the aircraft made a forced landing on a road. Ground witnesses described the climbout as '...very steep...' and '...a steep angle, between 40° 45°.' There was some bird residue on the engines. Both pilots escaped uninjured.

At about 60 feet agl black smoke was observed coming from the left engine. The aircraft continued a climb in a nose high attitude and the nose pitched down and the aircraft rolled inverted. Engine teardown revealed extensive damage to the supercharger assembly. The impeller shaft was bent and its associated bearing damaged. The aircraft had not flown for about 14 years. Engine service instructions describe pre-oiling of the supercharger drive shaft bearing after any prolonged period of inactivity. The owner, a paraplegic, was seated in the left seat. The pilot seated in the right seat had a history of heart and pulmonary disease. The gear and flaps were in the down position. Prior to departure, a witness asked the owner 'are you doing the elevators and ailerons and is he your rudders.' the owner responded with 'we have an arrangement'. Both occupants were killed.

The aircraft departed Oakland, CA at 1733 PST on a night flight to Honolulu, HI. The flight proceeded without incident until approximately 0050 PST when the pilot advised that the left engine was slowly losing oil pressure. At that time, the aircraft was at an altitude of 6,000 feet. At 0205, the pilot reported he shut down the engine and was unable to maintain 6000 feet. A descent was started. In his last transmission at 0228 PST, the pilot reported that he was at 500 feet, barely maintaining altitude. Radio contact was lost when the aircraft was approximately 500 miles east of Honolulu. At 1559, the crew of a search aircraft sighted floating debris and one body floating in that area. A marker buoy was deployed, but no recovery was accomplish. The aircraft was presumed to have been destroyed and both occupants were presumed to have been fatally injured. The aircraft crashed in moderate sea conditions with waves heights estimated at three to five feet.

Aero Commander 560E, N3827C (27C) was returning from Blairstown where it had been flown for minor maintenance. The pilot was on an IFR flight plan, cleared by New York tracon to proceed at 2,000 feet msl on a radar vector of 170° for an ILS approach to the Teterboro Airport. The aircraft was equipped with an altitude encoding transponder that was being used. The pilot was advised of numerous targets at his 12 o'clock position. At approximately the same time, Cessna 182Q, N96402 (402), was on a flight from the Kupper Airport to Ramapo Airport. A direct route between these airports would have intersected the nw edge of the New York TCA where positive control began between 1,800 and 7,000 feet msl. The pilot was proceeding VFR with no flight plan and was not in radio communication with any ATC facility. 402 was equipped with a transponder that was operating, but had no altitude encoding capability. As the aircraft converged, 402 was on a northeasterly heading. The planes collided about 1 mile inside the TCA. Then impacted the ground approximately 1,500 feet apart. A map was found in 402 with a line drawn between the airports and intersecting the TCA. All three occupants in both aircraft were killed.

At about 1930 cdt, the aircraft departed Yukon, OK on a direct flight to Alton, IL. It landed at Alton at about 2200 cdt, and about 10 minutes later, it departed on a return flight to Yukon. Before departing Alton, the pilot stated that he would refuel at Springfield, MO while on the return trip. However, there was no indication that the plane was refueled at Springfield. Subsequently, the aircraft crashed near Afton, OK at about 2350 cdt. A witness stated that he had seen the aircraft circling back and forth across the highway at low altitude, then it went into a left bank and nose dived into the ground. An investigation revealed the aircraft impacted in a near level attitude, but in a steep angle of descent. The fuel tanks were found to be empty. There was no evidence of fuel spillage on the ground, except near the right tip tank. The left and right fuel selectors were found positioned to the right main tank. The pilot, sole on board, was killed.

On approach to Khartoum-Haj Yussuf Airport in bad visibility, the crew reported technical problems and requested clearance for an emergency landing. The four engine airplane crashed in the Nile River about 5 km from the airport and came to rest in shallow water. All 11 occupants were rescued. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

After takeoff the aircraft was observed to trail a brown substance. About 3 miles from the airport the right engine oil pressure dropped. The pilot decided to return to the airport. When he thought the runway was attainable he lowered the flaps; however, a loss of power in the left engine occurred and a landing was made in a wheat field. Investigation revealed failure of the front master rod bearing in the right engine. The aircraft had not been flown for five years prior to this flight and evidence of oil starvation was apparent in both engines. Both pilots escaped with minor injuries.

The aircraft crashed about half a mile southwest of the departure end of runway 32L. The runway had been illuminated at the time of takeoff with the aircraft making a left turn into an area that was not illuminated toward the mountains. It was a very dark night with an indistiguishable horizon southwestward toward the higher mountains. There were two brightly lit softball complexes located to the north toward the city. A weather study indicated probable moderate to severe turbulence and up and down drafts below 7,000 feet msl, and light to moderate wind shear from the surface up to 300 feet agl. A witness who saw the fireball stated she had lost control of her car because a gust of wind pushed her car into the other lane of traffic. Both occupants were killed.

En route from Oakland to Honolulu, both engines failed. The pilot reduced his altitude and ditch the aircraft off Pacific Grove. The pilot was rescued while the aircraft sank and was lost.