EXCERPT FROM RECENT FAA ACCIDENT REPORT
EYEWITNESS STATEMENT
AIRCRAFT: CESSNA 172
PILOT: 30 YRS OLD, CFI, IR
FATALITIES: None
DAMAGE: Substantial
DATE OF ACCIDENT: July 10 1982
WITNESS: Line attendant at *** airport
Pilot came to airport at 9 AM 10 Jul 1982. Line boy reports padlock
on his hangar door was so rusted he had to break it off with a 10#
ball-peen hammer.
Also had to inflate all 3 tires and scrap pigeon droppings off wind-
screen. After several attempts to drain fuel strainers--pilot finally
got what looked like fuel out of the wings sumps. Couldn't get the oil
dipstick out of the engine but said it was okay last time he looked.
Engine started okay--ran rough for about 1/2 minute. Then died. Then
battery would not turn prop. Used battery cart and although starter
was smoking real good, it finally started and the prop wash blew the
smoke away.
Line boy offered to fuel airplane up but pilot said he was late for an
appointment at a nearby airport. Said it wasn't far. Taxied about 1/2
way out to active runway and the engine stopped. Pushed it back to the
fuel pumps and bought 3 gallons for the left wing tank. Started it
again. This time, he was almost out to the runway when it quit again.
Put a little rock under nose wheel; hand propped it; and was seen still
trying to climb in the airplane as it went across the runway. Finally
got in it; blew out the right tire trying to stop before the cement plant.
When he taxied back in to have the tire changed, he also had the line
boy hit the right wing with 3 gallons of gas. Witness, who saw the take-
off, said the aircraft lined up and took off to the north. Takeoff looked
fairly normal--nose came up about 300 ft down the runway. At midfield
nose came down. Engine coughed twice--then cut power and applied the
brakes which made both doors fly open and a big fat brown book fell out
on the runway and released probably a million little white pages with
diagrams on them. Looked like sort of a snow storm.
After several real loud runups at the end, he turned her around and took
off in the other direction going south into the wind. Only this time he
horsed her off at the end and pulled her up real steep like one of them
jet fighter planes--to about 300 ft--then the engine quit!
Did a sort of a slow turn back toward the airport--kinda like that Art
School guy-- and about 30 ft off the McDonald's cafe she started roaring
again. He did sort of a high speed pass down the runway; put the flaps
down to full and that sucker went up like he was going to do an Immelman!
The engine quit again and he turned right and I thought he was coming
right through the front window of the F.B.O.; but he pulled her up--went
through the TV antenna and the little rooster with the NSE&W things--over
the building then bounced the main wheels off the roof of 3 different cars
in the lot--a Porsche, a Mercedes and Dr. Brown's new El Dorado.
When he bounced off the El Dorado the engine roared to life and he got her
flying. Came around toward the runway and set her down--once on the
overrun, once on the runway and once in the grass beside the runway. He
taxied into the ramp--shut her down--and ordered 3 more gallons of gas.
Said it was for safety's sake.
Then he asked where the phone booth was as he had to call his student and
tell him he was going to be a little bit late.
W H Y C O P S H A T E Y O U <<<<&l <
-if you have to ask get out of the way-
Have you ever been stopped by a traffic cop and, while he was
writing a ticket or giving you a warning, you got the feeling that
he would just love to yank you out of the car, right through the
window, and smash your face into the front fender?...
