Passengers OK, But Spartan Executive Out Of Competition

Sadly, there will be one less aircraft vying for the National Aviation Hall of Fame’s "Best of the Best" People’s Choice Award at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2007. The Experimental Aircraft Association tells ANN the 1939 Spartan Executive slated to be one of the six restored vintage airplanes in that competition sustained extensive damage in a landing incident in South Dakota Friday morning.

Owners Kent and Sandy Blankenburg of Groveland, CA were landing at Sioux Falls Regional Airport when, according to a report in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, one of the landing gears apparently collapsed, causing the plane (type shown above) to run off and spin about 150 feet off the runway.

The good news is, there were no injuries -- and Kent and Sandy still plan to drive to AirVenture, according to the EAA.

That leaves five contenders for the first-annual "Best of the Best" People's Choice Award competition. They include the Lockheed P-38 "Glacier Girl"; a Piper L-4; Fairchild KR-21; Grumman Duck (owned by Chuck Greenhill); and Waco ATO.

The presentation of the "Best of the Best" trophy will take place at 1 pm on Saturday, July 28 at EAA AirVenture. Representatives of the Hall of Fame, EAA and NAHI will be joined by several enshrinees of the National Aviation Hall of Fame in the trophy presentation.

IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 17667        Make/Model: 7W        Description: SPARTAN 7W
  Date: 07/13/2007     Time: 1604

  Event Type: Incident   Highest Injury: None     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Unknown

LOCATION
  City: SIOUX FALLS   State: SD   Country: US

DESCRIPTION
  AIRCRAFT RIGHT GEAR COLLAPSED ON LANDING, SIOUX FALLS, SD

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

WEATHER: KFSD 131603Z 20007KT 10S, BKN070 22/10 A3012

OTHER DATA
  Activity: Unknown      Phase: Landing      Operation: OTHER

  FAA FSDO: RAPID CITY, SD  (GL27)                Entry date: 07/16/2007

FMI: www.airventure.org