Sad

[Dale Campbell]

I just read the sad news about Paul. My son-in-law and I have fond memories of Paul. We had drinks with Paul and Mary at the last SOAPA meeting at Mistic Harbor just before diner. I was telling Mary what a great husband she had, as we sat and listened to Paul playing the piano. I said he is a man of many talants. She made me laugh when she told me he would not even consider marriage until she checked out in the 337 as pilot in comamd. Thank god she was not with him on the check ride that day of the accident. I just read his book on the trip around South America. I told Paul the night he gave me a signed copy of his book he had a zest for life and enjoyed more than most men will ever have. We will all miss him greatly and my heart goes out to Mary and his family. Dale & George

[Ernie Martin]

It seems we can now rule out engine failure or fuel starvation/contamination. The witness who was very close to the accident scene and "jumped the fence" to reach the wreck said that "the engine sounded normal, he never cut back on the engine, he sounded wide open". You can see the interview and video shots of the accident scene at:

http://www.wesh.com/news/central-flo...z/-/index.html

I continue to be both surprised and worried about this accident, and what it means for Skymaster pilots.

Paul's Mayday call suggests that it was not incapacitation but, until we know details of the call, I don't think we can rule it out -- it may have been him uttering "Mayday" at the onset of pain and as he planned to turn back to the airport.

Because witnesses descriptions indicate that the airplane was whole as it struck the trees, we may be able to rule out structural failure (i.e., airplane breaking apart in flight).

So, until incapacitation is ruled out, we are left with that and failure of a control surface as the most likely culprits.

And here we may want to look at failure of a flap cable. One witness said that "the plane was sideways through the trees". Was that Paul's turn back to the airport or the aircraft rolling because the flap on one of the wings snapped back to its neutral position due to a broken cable while the other flap remained in its extended 1/3 position for take-off? And the wide-open throttle described by witnesses adds to this, because on Paul's last message on the flap-cable thread he says "And a reminder for us all to be primed to quickly retract the flaps and add full power in case of un-commanded roll" (emphasis mine).

My apologies if some of you believe this is speculative and inappropriate. The new witness details allow us to rule out some factors (e.g., fuel starvation/contamination), so I think it's not speculative. And I think Paul would want all of us to fly safer.

Ernie

[WebMaster]

Ernie,
Unlike some other incidents, I think this is both speculative and inappropriate.
I'm sure that Mary would not want to read anything at all like this.

[Ernie Martin]

Thanks, Larry. My apologies again. I hope others feel different.

Ernie

[hharney]

http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/br...13X43319&key=1

[hharney]

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/new...59#fbLoggedOut

[stackj]

Wow! I have been away from the website for so long. What terrible news to return to. God speed, Paul. Mary - Jenny and my prayers are with you. May he bring peace and comfort to you.