Wirestrike Accident Cessna 172N N733RK,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 45946
 
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Date:Sunday 6 May 2001
Time:15:40
Type:Silhouette image of generic C172 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Cessna 172N
Owner/operator:Sabris Corporation
Registration: N733RK
MSN: 17268488
Year of manufacture:1976
Total airframe hrs:8999 hours
Engine model:Lycoming O-320-H2AD
Fatalities:Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Category:Accident
Location:WICHITA, KS -   United States of America
Phase: Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature:Training
Departure airport:Wichita, KS (3KM)
Destination airport:
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The airplane was observed flying low in the vicinity of the Wichita International Raceway, Wichita, Kansas. One witness reported hearing two blasts like a shotgun. The witness said he and his friends drove over to where they thought the sound had come from. They found the airplane lying on the guard rail of the racetrack totally on fire. Another witness working in his yard just north of the racetrack said he heard the sound of a small airplane, stopped what he was doing and searched to gain sight of the airplane. He said that he had a clear view of the airplane. It was traveling north-northwest at an altitude of 150 to 200 feet and descending slightly. The witness said the engine speed was very high, but sounded normal, and the flaps were up. The witness watched the airplane until he lost sight of it behind some trees. "About the time I lost visual contact … I heard the metallic sound and noticed that all the power wires (east and west) were bouncing." The witness said he ran into the house to call 9-1-1, but the phones were dead and there was no power to the house. An examination of the accident site revealed damage to a tower support cable pole atop a 110-foot tall power line support tower. The north side 3/4-inch diameter support cable was observed draped through trees northeast of the tower and ran north-northeast to the airplane main wreckage. The cable ran through the airplane's empennage and on to the racetrack. One broken end of the cable was on the racetrack south of the airplane. The top 8 inches of the airplane's vertical stabilizer and rudder was located 15 feet east of the racetrack beneath the power lines. A 3/4-inch diameter c-shaped indention ran horizontally along the right side of the piece. An examination of the remainder of the airplane revealed no anomalies. The airplane's owner said that flight instructors were using the racetrack as a practice strip to set up and practice emergency landings.




Probable Cause: the student pilot not maintaining clearance from the tower support wire during the practice emergency landing maneuver and the instructor pilot's inadequate supervision of the student pilot. Factors relating to the accident were the static wire and the low altitude.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: CHI01FA130
Status: Investigation completed
Duration:
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20010510X00923&key=1

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
28-Oct-2008 00:45 ASN archive Added
21-Dec-2016 19:24 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
10-Dec-2017 11:23 ASN Update Bot Updated [Source, Narrative]

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