Cirrus Takes a Swim, Aerostar Night Crash, Twin Comanche VMC Roll & More
Episode 36 of NTSB News Talk examines nine accidents and incidents that offer important lessons about night flying, spatial disorientation, weather avoidance, multi-engine operations, stabilized approaches, low-altitude maneuvering, and the importance of recognizing when a flight is no longer going according to plan.
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Max Trescott and Rob Mark begin with a Cessna 172, N1166F, that crashed at Blackfoot, Idaho, on August 1, 2026. The 26-year-old pilot was killed and two passengers were seriously injured. ADS-B data showed three trips around the traffic pattern during the nighttime flight. Although the low-altitude portion of the flight was not captured, the wreckage location and accident photographs led Max to discuss the possibility that the airplane stalled shortly after initiating a go-around. The accident also prompts a discussion of the risks young pilots face while accumulating the experience needed for professional flying careers.
Next is Cirrus SR22T N625LK, which crashed near Bend, Oregon, on August 4. The airplane remained airborne for more than five hours while flying an unusual pattern over a heavily forested area. Law enforcement attempted to contact the pilot during the flight, and authorities subsequently said the pilot intentionally crashed the aircraft in a remote area. Max and Rob discuss the unusual circumstances while expressing condolences to the pilot's family and friends.
The next accident involves Aerostar 601P N800AA, which departed Adirondack Regional Airport at Saranac Lake, New York, late at night on July 13. The airplane carried a private pilot and two family members, all of whom were killed. Surveillance data indicated that the airplane climbed only about 125 feet above the ground and then descended, eventually flying at roughly 75 feet AGL while accelerating. Max discusses somatogravic illusion and why acceleration during a dark-night takeoff can create a powerful false sensation that the airplane is pitching up, potentially causing a pilot to lower the nose unless the pilot relies on the flight instruments.
A Beech Baron, N202DK, crashed near Waterloo, Illinois, on July 9 after departing the St. Louis area on a nighttime VFR flight. The accident area was experiencing heavy rain, lightning, strong winds, and poor visibility. ADS-B data showed numerous heading and altitude changes before the aircraft climbed sharply and its groundspeed dropped dramatically. Both the pilot and pilot-rated passenger were killed. The accident provides another reminder of the danger of attempting to maneuver around weather visually at night and of continued VFR flight into instrument conditions.
Piper Twin Comanche N8154Y presents a different kind of threat. During an instructional flight near Tulsa, the right engine briefly sputtered and dropped to about 1,500 RPM before apparently returning to normal. The instructor wisely headed back to the airport. But after an unstable approach, she initiated a go-around and applied full power. The airplane suddenly rolled inverted to the right and crashed. Both occupants survived with serious injuries. Max and Rob discuss the possibility of a VMC roll and one of the most important lessons from the accident: an engine problem that appears to have “fixed itself” should still be treated as an engine problem.
The first final report involves Diamond DA42 N705JP and a runway excursion at Mandan, North Dakota. Although the pilot initially believed the brakes had failed, investigators found the braking system operating normally. Performance data showed that the airplane touched down at 92 knots—six knots above calculated Vref—and was not fully on the runway until 2,136 feet beyond the threshold. It also landed with a six-knot tailwind and approach rather than landing flaps. The NTSB concluded there was insufficient runway remaining to stop and cited the pilot's failure to go around following an unstable approach.
Another final report involves an unregistered Piper PA-18 being used for aerial predator control. The airplane was maneuvering about 100 feet above the ground at very low groundspeed when it stalled and crashed, killing both occupants. Investigators also identified cellphone use as a distraction, and toxicology found a sedating antihistamine in the pilot's system. The accident demonstrates how several individually manageable risks can combine into an unrecoverable situation when operating close to the ground.
Cirrus SR22T N778WT was damaged during takeoff from a 2,400-foot private turf runway at Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. The pilots had overflown the runway before landing, but an FAA inspection afterward found uneven terrain caused by anthills, mole tunnels, and ground settling. During the subsequent soft-field takeoff, the airplane veered from the runway and struck adjacent water. Max explains why unfamiliar grass strips deserve particular caution, especially in heavier, high-value airplanes such as a Cirrus.
Finally, Gulfstream G600 N600WE experienced a runway excursion while landing at Birmingham, Alabama, in heavy rain. The crew saw the runway about 250 feet above the ground and continued a stabilized ILS approach, but visibility deteriorated dramatically during the flare and the pilots lost outside visual reference. The airplane drifted off the paved surface and sustained substantial wing damage. Nobody aboard was injured.
The lesson Max emphasizes is simple: seeing the runway does not guarantee that conditions will remain acceptable through touchdown. If outside visual references disappear during a landing, a go-around may be the safest—and easiest—decision.
The episode also marks the 45th anniversary of the 1981 PATCO strike. Max recognizes Rob's remarkably prescient Chicago Tribune editorial written shortly before the strike, in which Rob warned controllers that a walkout could cost them their careers and destroy their union. He talks about it in his Stories About Flying Podcast.