Initial Flight Safety Report: Snowbirds Accident of May 18, 2007

[navymich]

Media Advisory
Initial Flight Safety Report: Snowbirds Accident of May 18, 2007

CAS MA 07.004 - August 20, 2007

OTTAWA – The initial flight safety report entitled “From the Investigator” (FTI), dealing with the May 18, 2007 Snowbirds crash in Montana, will be available today on the Air Force Directorate of Flight Safety (DFS) website.

The DFS investigation is still ongoing, but the FTI is the team’s initial report containing the facts of the accident as they are known at this time.  Conclusions, cause factors and recommendations are not contained in the FTI report.  A final Flight Safety Incident Report (FSIR) will be published on the same website, normally within one year of the accident.

Flight safety investigations are ordered to determine the causes of accidents so measures can be put in place to prevent a recurrence.  These preventive measures can then be applied throughout the Air Force.

-30-

The FTI can be viewed at the Directorate of Flight Safety web site as follows:
http://www.airforce.forces.gc.ca/dfs/

Questions about the Flight Safety report for this accident should be directed to the DND/CF Media Liaison Office at 996-2353 or 996-2354.



(note: as of the time of me posting this media advisory, nothing had yet been posted to the DFS site)

 

[navymich]

(note: as of the time of me posting this media advisory, nothing had yet been posted to the DFS site)

And as I posted that... :

From the Investigator
Aircraft Occurrence Summary

Type: Tutor CT114159

Date: 18 May 2007

Location: Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana

On Friday, 18 May 2007, the Snowbirds had completed a transit from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan to Great Falls, Montana. An afternoon practice was planned in preparation for flying displays on Saturday and Sunday at the Malmstrom Air Force Base Open House, located eight miles away from Great Falls International Airport. One of the manoeuvres to be flown was an Inverted Photo Pass in which Snowbird (SB) Lead flies across the show line upright with SB 2 flying inverted on his left wing, SB 3 flying inverted on his right wing, and SB 4 flying inverted above and behind SB Lead.

At approximately 22 minutes into the show, as SB 2 was rolling inverted for the Inverted Photo Pass, the aircraft was seen to dip low, waver, and then depart the formation. Still inverted, the aircraft climbed, then subsequently rolled upright. Upon reaching a nearly wings level attitude, at approximately 750 feet above ground level, the aircraft nosed over. The aircraft impacted the ground approximately 45 degrees nose down. The pilot did not eject and was killed on impact.

Initial analysis has determined that the pilot's lapbelt became unfastened when SB #2 rolled inverted, causing the pilot to fall out of his seat and lose control of the aircraft.

The investigation is focussing on how the lapbelt became unfastened. Preventive measures taken to date include modifications to the pilot restraint system, as well as enhanced training for aircrew and passengers. New procedures as well as changes to the Aircraft Operating Instructions have been implemented to reduce the likelihood of a recurrence.

 

[Scott]

Several posts deleted.

Quit asking potentially sensitive questions here.

Nuff said.

Scott
Army.ca Staff

 

[Bandit1]

Understood Sir, sorry.

 

[retiredgrunt45]

Just read this on MSN news about Capt McCaughey of the snowbirds and how the accident happended on May 18. Pretty scary for ones restraint system to fail when doing this type of maneuver.

A report into the fatal crash of a jet from the Snowbirds aerobatic squadron says the pilot lost control of his plane when his seatbelt became unfastened.

Capt. Shawn McCaughey was killed May 18 during an air show practice at Malmstrom Air Force Base near Great Falls, Mont.

The interim investigator's report says McCaughey was flying upside down during a pre-show practice session when his seatbelt came unfastened, he fell out of his seat and lost control of his Tutor jet.

The crash occurred during an inverted pass about 22 minutes into the show, when the No. 2 aircraft dipped low, wavered, and left the formation inverted.

The report says the aircraft climbed, then rolled upright before nosing over at about 750 feet above ground level.

McCaughey's plane hit the ground at about 45 degrees nose down. He never ejected from the aircraft.

The four-paragraph summary says the probe will now focus on how the seatbelt came loose.

According to the summary, preventive measures are already being implemented, including changes to the pilot restraint system, to the aircraft operating instructions and enhanced training for aircrew and passengers.

The Snowbirds aerobatic team has dedicated its season to McCaughey.

McCaughey is the third Snowbird pilot to die since 1998 and the sixth in the squadron's 35-year history.

He was replaced by Capt. Paul Couillard, a veteran of five seasons with the Snowbirds.

Link: http://news.sympatico.msn.ctv.ca/TopStories/ContentPosting.aspx?feedname=CTV-TOPSTORIES_V2&showbyline=True&newsitemid=CTVNews%2f20070820%2fsnowbirds_seatbelt_070820

 

[chanman]

Interesting.  I saw them perform at Abbotsford last weekend, and they were flying with his position empty, which understandable and a little jarring.

 

[Rick Ruter]

OMFG!

When you rolled inverted in the T-Bird, sometimes the seatpack would lift you out of the seat about an inch and that really made you sweat. I can only imagine falling in the canopy and on top of that he probably had full nose down trim which means your pinned to the canopy even more.

 

[time expired]

Just recently German TV had a documentary about the Snowbirds, about the selection
process, and during the run-up to their first show they had a dangerous situation
in which one of the singles from an inverted position recovered barely 50ft above
the ground.His explanation was that his seatbelt had broken causing him to lose
control of the aircraft.I do not know how old this film was,the only clue I could
offer is that one of the members was female,however it seems that this problem
was not new.
                    Regards

 

[Astrodog]

I saw the same thing on a CBC or TVO documentary; lapbelt broke during practice and pilot was able to recover. What a bummer though.

 

[Strike]

When they profiled that incident (with Rooster) on CTV Newsnet today they mentioned something about a photographer being on board too.

 

[geo]

Read in the papers this morning that the yave known for at least two years that there was a problem with the belts.  Apparently they were looking into a substitute .... apparently they had a substitute in hand (esp if they have "fixed" the problem since the crash).

Sigh!