Aviation Director Calls Second Crash In A Week "A Serious Concern"

Damn... For the second time in six days, an aircraft flying out of North Las Vegas Airport (VGT) in Nevada has crashed into a nearby residential neighborhood.

According to The Associated Press, a Piper PA-31 Navajo twin impacted power lines before it crashed into a parked car in a driveway located about 1/2 mile from the runway at VGT. The aircraft came to rest against a block wall in the home's backyard.

FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said the plane's pilot, the sole person onboard, reported a "rough-running engine" shortly after takeoff. The aircraft was returning to the airport when it crashed at approximately 2:35 pm local time, killing the pilot.

Witnesses said the plane was trailing smoke and even flames as it approached the airport. The aircraft exploded on impact, triggering a fire that burned one home nearly to the ground and scorched a second.

The crash knocked out power to about 900 residents for about an hour, but there's no indication anyone on the ground was injured. "It appears, right now, at this time, we only have one fatality, the pilot that was on the aircraft," said Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman Tim Szymanski.

The AP reports cabin-class aircraft (type shown below) was registered to a company in Gardena, CA and was heading to Palo Alto. The Navajo was flown to North Las Vegas earlier this week, and had 'mechanical work' performed.

As ANN reported, on August 22 an experimental Velocity 173RG crashed shortly after takeoff from VGT, on what appears to have been a shakedown flight for an engine supercharger. That accident claimed the lives of the plane's pilot, as well as two people on the ground.

Immediately after news broke Thursday of the Navajo accident, Clark County Aviation Director Randy Walker issued a statement calling the back-to-back crashes "a serious concern."

Walker has drawn ire from the general aviation community for his comments following the Velocity accident, including his suggestion that experimental aircraft be banished from "busier" airports. He also deemed flight training and "solo flying" to be "high-risk" activities.

The FAA and NTSB are investigating Thursday's accident.

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.mccarran.com/ga_nlv.asp