Instructor Dies When DA20 Clips Power Lines

A recent graduate of the US Air Force Academy is still in critical condition after the Diamond DA20 (file photo of type, below) she and her instructor were flying went down Wednesday morning after impacting power lines outside San Antonio.

Second Lieutenant Taryn Robinson, a member of the USAFA Class of 2005, suffered burns to 80 percent of her body. She was rescued from the wreckage by a passer-by just as it caught fire.

Robinson's instructor, who worked for Stinson Flying School, died in the accident. He is believed to have been pilot-in-command of the two-seat trainer when it went down.

According to media reports, the plane came to rest inverted and immediately caught fire following the accident. The flames also sparked a five-acre brush fire, said Chief Deputy David Soward of the Atascosa Sheriff's Department, limiting access to the wreckage.

Local worker Cindy Carter saw "a big black ball of smoke and flames" after she was drawn outside when the lights inside her nearby business flickered. "You couldn't even see the plane," she told the San Antonio Express-News. "You could only see the wheels sticking up through the flames."

"We immediately thought no one could have survived, that whoever was in there was surely dead," said Carter.

Robinson sustained broken bones in her neck from the accident, as well as severe burns that may result in the loss of her feet and several fingers. Doctors have estimated her chances of survival as 50/50.

FMI: www.usafa.af.mil