Cessna Citation jet crash at Van Nuys

[evangilder]

LOS ANGELES - A small jet crashed during takeoff from a surburban airport Friday, killing two people, authorities said. A witness said a nose compartment door was open as it lifted off.

Remains of two people were located in the burned wreckage, said Fire Department spokesman Ron Myers.

The twin-engine Cessna Citation jet had only its two crew members aboard, said Joe Miller, a dispatcher with Sun Quest Executive Air Charter, which operated the flight.

The jet went down in a lot near a street just north of Van Nuys Airport in the San Fernando Valley just before 11 a.m. Firefighters sprayed foam and quickly put out the fire. A nearby property was surrounded by parked cars. There appeared to be one car amid the wreckage.

It was heading to Long Beach, about 25 miles south of Los Angeles, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Ian Gregor.

Gregor said the pilot encountered some kind of emergency and crashed before being able to make it back to the airport.

The plane's left-hand nose baggage door was ``wide open'' as it took off, said witness Steve Purwin, a corporate jet pilot with 25 years experience.

The jet was ``auguring,'' or veering side to side, with its nose high at a low speed, he told The Associated Press.

``He was right on the verge of stall,'' Purwin said.

The plane then went into a right bank before crashing, he said.

Purwin noted that the baggage compartment had appeared to be empty and that if something had flown out it could have caused the left engine to flame out or hit the tail and cause control problems.

However, he said, he only saw the compartment door open and did not see anything come out.

Edward Reynolds, 83, whose home is just feet from the crash site, and was in his backyard when he saw the plane go down. The plane was at an angle moments before it crashed and its wing was just above the sidewalk, he said.

``The right wing hit a block wall and tumbled from there,'' he said. ``The plane was in the air at an angle, but there was nowhere to go but down.''

Van Nuys is the busiest general aviation airport in the nation, with an average of nearly 500,000 takeoffs and landings annually. The 730-acre facility is owned by the city's Los Angeles World Airports department and is used by private, corporate, charter, flight instruction and maintenance operations.

(AP)

KFWB News-News,Traffic,Dodgers - Crews Put Out Fire Shortly After Crash; Cessna Citation Holds Up to 10 People

[mkloby]

Always sad...

[the lancaster kicks ass]

odd about the door though, it seems too much of a rookie mistake, perhaps it popped open iself?

[FLYBOYJ]

Thank god they didn't take out any houses - it's bad enough Van Nuys Airport is not a loved icon in the local area!

Poor pilots!

[syscom3]

I have a friend who fly's those Citation jets out of Van Nuys.

When I heard about the crash I called him up and was relieved when he picked up the phone.

And of course he hadn't even heard about the crash untill I told him.

[FLYBOYJ]

Originally Posted by the lancaster kicks ass

odd about the door though, it seems too much of a rookie mistake, perhaps it popped open iself?

It could of - On many general aviation recips and smaller executive jets the baggage doors are flimsy and suffer from "user abuse." I've had many come open on me, luckily on the smaller recips they are kept closed due to their position in the fuselage (Cessna), but stuff could still fly out if one pops. It is possible it could of popped opened prior to take off and it's contents sucked into the engines, but this is merely speculation. Many of these doors have locks on them, I try to make sure they're always locked prior to take off.

[the lancaster kicks ass]

but that's just as much a design fault as anything else they must've know when designing her that if it popped open things would get sucked into the engine? i realise it's a convenient place to put stuff but it under the engine or inside..........

[FLYBOYJ]

Originally Posted by the lancaster kicks ass

but that's just as much a design fault as anything else they must've know when designing her that if it popped open things would get sucked into the engine? i realise it's a convenient place to put stuff but it under the engine or inside..........

Agree - that's could be the end result from building some GA and corporate aircraft "light and cheap!"

[Nonskimmer]

I read about this in the news last night. Poor folks.