North American AT 6 accident near Mesa, AZ
On May 18, 2016, a North American AT 6 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Mesa, AZ. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- May 18, 2016
- Place
- Mesa, AZ
- Aircraft
- North American AT 6 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 33.461°N, 111.728°W
- NTSB ID
- 20160518X05644
Official records · WPR16FA112
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- ATC Communication: Document (WAV), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn May 17, 2016, about 1842 mountain standard time, a North American AT-6, N3198G, was destroyed when it impacted terrain shortly after departure from Falcon Field Airport (FFZ), Mesa, Arizona. The airline transport pilot and the passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was registered to Wings of Flight Foundation and operated by the pilot as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 air tour flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed in the area and no flight plan was filed for the local flight, which originated from FFZ about 1840. Company personnel reported that the accident airplane was in the trail position behind another company airplane of the same make. The purpose of the flight was to depart FFZ and conduct a tour of the area north of the airport before returning. Witnesses located at the airport saw the airplane depart runway 22L and heard the engine producing "popping" sounds then a loud "bang." One of the witnesses stated that it appeared as though the engine was either not producing any power or not producing enough power. The witnesses further reported that they saw the airplane turning to the right and slowing down. The airplane subsequently impacted the ground and a postcrash fire ensued. Review of recorded radio transmissions from the air traffic control tower at FFZ revealed that, about 2 minutes after the flight of two was cleared for takeoff, the accident pilot transmitted "Dash 2 Mayday." The pilot did not state the nature of the emergency. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe pilot, age 43, held an airline transport pilot certificate wi
Probable cause
The pilot's inability to return to the departure airport due to an unspecified in-flight emergency for reasons that could not be determined during a postaccident examination of the airplane.
More accidents in AZ
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Browse: Arizona · North American aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
