Home Medical Factors Facing Pilots Aviation Stories Of Interest FAA Exam Aviation News Maintenance and Aircraft Mechanics General Aviation Helicopters
Aviation History Legal Issues In Aviation Links To Other Sites Editorials Hot Air Balloon Aviation Training Handbooks Read Online Upcoming Events Editorials

 



 
Midsize Corporate Jet Crashes On Final Approach To Akron Airport Killing All Onboard
 
 

November 11, 2015 - On Tuesday about 2:53 PM, a British Aerospace BAE-125-700A, (Hawker 800) a twin engine midsize corporate jet crashed while on final approach for runway 25 at Akron/Canton-Fulton International Airport, Ohio killing all nine people onboard.

Witnesses reported just before the crash, Flight EFT1526 (It appears this aircraft tail number has been blocked by the owner for privacy reasons) had clipped telephone and electric wires, authorities on scene report the jet crashed into a home, an apartment building and came rest on an embankment.

No injuries or deaths occurred on the ground, The crash site is about 2 miles NE of the airport on the corner of Mogadore and Skelton Road.

 

Of the nine onboard the Hawker 800, five of the employees were employed at a Florida real-estate company, Pebb Enterprises located in Boca Raton. On the company's website, the company states, " Our hearts are broken this morning with the news of the tragic accident that took the lives of two principals and five employees of Pebb Enterprises. We are shocked and deeply saddened for the families, colleagues and friends of those who perished."

The operator of the Hawker 800, ExecuFlight President, Augusto "Danny" Lewkowicz, reported he would not release the names of the 7 passengers or the pilot and  copilot. On Monday, the charter flight, by Execuflight, a Florida company had departed from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to the Akron Fulton International Airport, with a stop in Dayton. The Hawker 800 is owned by The Rais Group International NC LLC located in Charlotte, North Carolina and the aircraft was hangared in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Lewkowicz stated the aircraft “was a perfectly well-maintained aircraft with no squawks.” He further stated the pilots had not made any indication that there was anything wrong with the aircraft. Upon impact, the Hawker 800 burst into a massive fire making it impossible for first responders to get to the aircraft. The apartment building had caught on fire and the building was completely destroyed. Over 1,500 residents lost electrical power, although Ohio Edison officials reported all but 100 customers were restored by 4:30 PM.

 

 

On Monday about 7 AM. the Hawker 800 departed Fort Lauderdale with several landings at St. Paul, Minnesota, Quad City International Airport, Moline, Ill., St. Louis Airport, Missouri and then its final stop for the day at Cincinnati Municipal Airport at about 7:50 PM. On Tuesday about 2:13 PM, the Hawker 800 departed from Cincinnati Municipal Airport for Akron/Canton-Fulton International Airport, Ohio. Below is a complete flight schedule of Flight EFT1526.

- It began with Flight EFT521 began in Fort Lauderdale, leaving at 6:58 a.m. EST, Monday and landing at St. Paul (Minn.) Holman Field at 9:19 a.m.

- After an 1:40 layover, the second-leg was Flight EFT1522, leaving at 10:59 a.m. CST from St. Paul and arriving at 11:47 a.m. CST at Quad City International Airport in Moline, Ill.

- After a 3:11 layover, the third-leg was flight EFT1523, leaving at 2:58 p.m. CST from Moline and arriving at 3:36 p.m. at the Spirit of St. Louis Airport.

- After a 2:13 layover, the fourth-leg was flight EFT1524, leaving at 5:49 p.m. CST from St. Louis and arriving at 7:49 p.m. EST at Cincinnati Municipal Airport, where the aircraft and crew stayed overnight.

- On Tuesday, the fifth-leg was flight EFT1525, leaving at 11:12 a.m. from Cincinnati and arriving at 11:25 a.m. at Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport. The airplane was originally scheduled to leave at 10:30 a.m.

- After a 2:48 layover, the sixth-leg was Flight EFT1526, leaving at 2:13 p.m. from Dayton with seven passengers and two pilots. It was scheduled to arrive at 2:49 p.m. at Akron Fulton International Airport. 

Akron Fulton International Airport is an uncontrolled airport, meaning the airport does not have an FAA control tower. After the pilots of Flight EFT1526 were released by Akron-Canton Approach (they were on an IFR flight plan) they were passed on to a nearby airport that had a control tower, Akron-Canton Regional Airport and then passed onto Akron/Canton-Fulton International Airport common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) were the pilots had to rely on air-to-air communication between them and aircraft in the vicinity of the airport and aircraft on the ground. The approach was to runway 25, a non-precision approach using the LOC/DME and a 4-light PAPI system which has a visual range of about 5 miles during the day under fair conditions (Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI)).

METAR (Meteorological Aerodrome Report) Weather report:

19:31 UTC / 14:31 local time: KAKR 101931Z AUTO 25008KT 1 1/2SM BR OVC005 11/09 A2995 RMK AO2 CIG 003V009 T01110094
 
19:54 UTC / 14:54 local time: KAKR 101954Z AUTO 24007KT 1 1/2SM BR BKN004 OVC009 11/09 A2995 RMK AO2 SLP142 T01060094
Wind: 240° at 7 knots; Visibility: 1.5 miles in mist; Broken clouds at 400 feet AGL, overcast cloud deck at 900 feet AGL; Temperature: 11°C; Dewpoint: 9°C; pressure 1014.3 mb
 
20:05 UTC / 15:05 local time: KAKR 102005Z AUTO 24011KT 1 1/4SM -RA BR OVC006 11/09 A2995 RMK AO2 RAB05 CIG 003V009 P0000 T01060094

The FAA and NTSB will be looking closely at the amount of sleep the pilots received before Tuesdays flight, they will be looking at weather conditions as the weather at the time was IFR with reports of icing conditions, pilot reports have indicated approaches in the area was down to the minimums, any conditions at the airport that may have contributed to the crash. It was reported by the FAA that the pilots did not notified Akron-Canton Approach nor Akron-Canton Regional Airport of any problems. A pilot who landed at Akron Fulton shortly before the crash was on the same radio frequency, he reported he did not hear a distress call from Flight EFT1526.
 

NTSB Official NTSB Vice Chair T. Bella Dinh-Zarr
Gives Update On Akron Plane Crash

The FAA will also most likely try to determine if this aircraft stalled before the crash and if so, did the aircraft stall above the expected stall speed as this could be an indication of icing. One eyewitness report hints at the aircraft may have stalled while on approach when she said the wing banked to the left then to the right and then crashed. The stall characteristics on the 125 aircraft can be challenging as evident through multiple pilot reports on this subject matter.  

Update: the tail number has been posted on the internet - N237WR

 
Other News Stories (For the latest news please checkout our home page)
 
 
 
blog comments powered by Disqus  
Home Aviation News Aviation Stories Of Interest FAA Exam Upcoming Events Links To Other Sites General Aviation Helicopters Medical Factors Facing Pilots
Maintenance and Aircraft Mechanics Hot Air Balloon Aviation Training Handbooks Read Online Aviation History Legal Issues In Aviation Sea Planes Editorials
 
 ©AvStop Online Magazine                                                                 Contact Us                                                  Return To News                                          Bookmark and Share  
 
 

AvStop Aviation News and Resource Online Magazine