Witnesses Say Baron Hit While Landing

Could it have been lightning that caused the crash of a Beechcraft 58 Baron in Jeanerette, LA Tuesday afternoon?

Witnesses say the aircraft, arriving from Corpus Christi, TX, was struck by lightning just before it went down as it was on approach to land at the Jeanerette airport. The plane (file photo of type, right) impacted a building, a house and a mobile home... killing the occupant of the trailer.

Also lost in the accident were pilot Ferrell Skelton, a flight instructor and owner of the Airman Knowledge Test Center -- and his passenger, John Blackburn.

The occupant of the mobile home was identified as an elderly man, Lucian Broussard. Local news reports indicate he used an oxygen tank to help with breathing... and that the tank might have exploded when the plane hit the trailer.

The FAA and NTSB are now investigating the cause of the crash.

**   Report created 7/19/2006   Record 1
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IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 158LW        Make/Model: BE58      Description: 58 Baron
  Date: 07/18/2006     Time: 2130

  Event Type: Accident   Highest Injury: Fatal     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Destroyed

LOCATION
  City: JEANERETTE   State: LA   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
  ACFT ON APPROACH TO AIRPORT, CRASHED INTO A RESIDENTIAL AREA, THE TWO
  PERSONS ON BOARD WERE FATALLY INJURED AND ONE PERSON IN THE GROUND WAS
  FATALLY INJURED, JEANERETTE, LA

INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   3
                 # Crew:   2     Fat:   2     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Pass:   0     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   1     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   

WEATHER: NOT REPORTED

OTHER DATA

  Departed: CORPUS CHRISTI, TX          Dep Date:    Dep. Time:     
  Destination: JEANERETTE, LA           Flt Plan: IFR          Wx Briefing: 
  Last Radio Cont: 
  Last Clearance: 

  FAA FSDO: BATON ROUGE, LA  (SW03)               Entry date: 07/19/2006

FMI: www.faa.gov