267 What Led to Fatal Breakup of a Medevac Pilatus PC-12 in Nevada
Aviation News Talk – Pilot Stories, Safety Tips & General Aviation News
Glass Cockpit Publishing
4.8 • 730 Ratings
🗓️ 28 February 2023
⏱️ 29 minutes
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Summary
267 What Led to Fatal Breakup of a Medevac Pilatus PC-12 in Nevada
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Summary
267 Max plays audio from ATC and the NTSB press conference and discusses what preceded the fatal breakup of a medevac Pilatus PC-12 in Nevada. The aircraft departed Reno, International Airport on February 24, 2023 at about 9 PM. It was snowing lightly at the time, and moderate turbulence and icing were reported in the area. It was a medevac flight with a pilot and four passengers, including a patient. Approximately 15 minutes after departure, the aircraft turned off the instrument departure procedure it was flying, turning about 90 degrees to the right. It appears the autopilot was disconnected about the time of the turn and that the pilot hand flew the airplane to get it back on the original course. About a minute later, it began a steep spiraling turn to the right with a high descent rate. Max discusses possible reasons the autopilot may have become disconnected.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The last radar return was at about 11,000 feet, and the evidence we have at this point is that the aircraft broke up in flight. |
| 0:11.7 | The outboard section of the right wing, the vertical, excuse me, the horizontal stabilizer and elevator also departed the aircraft. |
| 0:21.2 | That's the voice of NTSB Vice Chairman Bruce Lansberg, speaking at an NTSB press conference |
| 0:26.7 | about the tragic crash of a Pilates PC-12 in Nevada. |
| 0:30.3 | And today we'll answer the question, what happened just before this aircraft broke up in flight? |
| 0:35.3 | Hello again and welcome to Aviation News Talk where we talk at General Aviation, with relevant news and flying tips for pilots and student |
| 0:41.6 | pilots to help keep you safe. I'm Max Crescott, the author of several books in the Garmin G-1000, |
| 0:46.9 | 3,000, 5,000 in perspective and the 2008 National Flight Instructor of the Year. Today we'll be |
| 0:53.3 | talking about what led up to the |
| 0:54.6 | crash of a Medevac PC12 a few days ago. Last week in episode 265, we talked about |
| 1:01.2 | precipitation static or piece static, how it occurs and what you can do about it. And we also |
| 1:06.8 | had a Friday mailbag episode, episode 266, in which we read your letters and feedback, |
| 1:12.3 | including what it would take to transition a pilot trained in a diamond DA 42 into a traditional |
| 1:17.3 | piston twin, and about a fatal DA42 spin accident in Norway. So if you didn't hear those episodes, |
| 1:23.5 | you may want to check them out at AviationNewstalk.com slash 265 and 266. |
| 1:29.3 | And this is a listener-supported show and we're still ad-free. |
| 1:32.7 | So if you've ever learned anything from Aviation News Talk, please just take the two or three minutes it takes to become a member and join the club to support Aviation News Talk. |
| 1:41.5 | Just go out to AviationNewsTalk.com slash awesome, and when you do, I'll read |
| 1:45.7 | your name on the show. And of course, I've included a link for that website in our show notes. |
| 1:50.5 | And if my voice sounds slightly different, it's because I'm recording this show from my hotel |
| 1:54.8 | room in Knoxville, Tennessee, where I've been for the past three days. I flew here Friday in |
| 1:59.9 | a Vision Jet with its owner, |
... |
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