Even Though Right Engine Had Just Been Reinstalled
Whatever caused an
MU-2B-60 to go down in Ferndale (MD) May 14th, it wasn't the
engine. So says the NTSB in its preliminary report on the accident.
The crash killed the pilot, 34-year old Thomas Lennon.
Epps Air Service Flight 101, an unscheduled 14 CFR Part 135
flight, had been cleared to land at Baltimore-Washington
International Airport in VFR weather, according to the report. But
that's not what the pilot did, according to the FAA report:
Radar returns revealed that the airplane continued on a westerly
track, north of the airport, that bypassed the approach end of
runway 33R, but would have been consistent with a modified downwind
for runway 15L. Along that track, the airplane descended to 700
feet. Just prior to the abeam position for runway 15L, the airplane
began a left turn back toward the southeast. A last radar return
occurred in the approximate position of the wreckage site, with an
indicated altitude of 200 feet.
Witness Reports
According to the NTSB
preliminary report:
Several witnesses noticed the airplane just prior to the
accident. One stated that it was "flying abnormally," and initially
thought it was a stunt plane. He noticed it making "swaying motions
as if it were going to bank left, then right, and back left again."
As the airplane neared a tree line, its "nose flipped up and
back."
Another witness was standing outside when he noticed the
airplane flying "very low" near a high school. It "all of a sudden
made a very sharp bank to the left," then "began tilting right,
then left, and finally back to left over a 180-degree bank, and
directly into the ground."
A third witness reported seeing the wings "straight up and
down," while other witnesses reported the airplane "at a 45-degree
angle, then rolled to the opposite angle," "pitch and roll
violently, falling tail over nose," and "seemed to tip to the left
with a sharp turn."
No Mechanical Fault
Finally, the report indicated that the aircraft appeared to be
functioning normally just before it hit the ground:
There was no evidence of mechanical
failure. All flight control surfaces were accounted for at the
scene, and control continuity was confirmed from the cockpit to the
tail surfaces, and from the cockpit to the wing separation points.
The landing gear and flaps were up. Both engines exhibited
signatures consistent with power being produced at the time of
impact, including the burnishing of all leading edge impeller
vanes, at least one impeller vane bent backwards on each engine,
metal spattering on the suction side of the third stage turbine
blades, and organic material, including dirt and debris, on the
igniters. The spline shafts of both fuel pumps, from the fuel pump
to the fuel control units, were intact.