Light Aircraft Crash at Caenarfon
The Original Whirly
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 1999
Location: Belper, Derbyshire, UK
Posts: 4,326
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Pilot killed in aircraft crash at Caernarfon
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...narfon-airport
Does anyone know any details? I have friends at Caernarfon.
Does anyone know any details? I have friends at Caernarfon.
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Newick
Posts: 117
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Caernarfon Airport plane crash: Pilot killed as light aircraft 'smashes into runway and explodes in massive fireball'
Other sources, quoting eye witnesses, suggest it was a twin-engined plane.
Reported elsewhere it was a Piper PA-31 Navajo
Other sources, quoting eye witnesses, suggest it was a twin-engined plane.
Reported elsewhere it was a Piper PA-31 Navajo
Reported elsewhere as N250AC ex G-NWAC
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Cardiff
Posts: 618
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Colour scheme is consistent with published photos of the wreckage.
Previous owner on the UK register is North West Air Charters Ltd. The reported pilot was a director of that company.
Previous owner on the UK register is North West Air Charters Ltd. The reported pilot was a director of that company.
More info below. It appears to be either a medical emergency or a serious aircraft malfunction.
Tributes to 'truly lovely man' who died in Caernarfon airport crash - Daily Post
Tributes to 'truly lovely man' who died in Caernarfon airport crash - Daily Post
Link to AAIB Report
"...The elevator trim was found in a significantly nose-down position, and whilst the reason for this could not be determined, it is likely it would have caused the pilot considerable difficulty in maintaining control of the aircraft...A possible scenario is a trim runaway..."
BBC News Report on result of investigation
John Backhouse, 62, from Cheshire, was flying in his twin-engine plane from Northwich to Dublin when the crash happened on 6 September 2017.
Mr Backhouse contacted air traffic control five minutes before the crash requesting a diversion to Caernarfon.
Tests found it would have taken "substantial effort" to stay in flight.
The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) said Mr Backhouse was struggling with a pitch control problem with the elevators after requesting a diversion to Caernarfon.
Pitch relates to the angle between the nose and tail of the plane.
Eyewitnesses said they saw the plane approaching the runway at high speed.
CCTV footage showed the wings were level but the landing gear was retracted and the flight path had a very steep descent rate.
The aircraft broke up and caught fire after crashing into the runway, with the main part of the wreckage coming to rest 293m (961ft) further on.
The AAIB investigation examined whether or not Mr Backhouse had faced a runaway fault within the pitch trim system which was connected to the autopilot controls of the plane.
The report concluded that the fire damage made it difficult to determine the cause of the accident with a high level of confidence, but it was possible that there was a "nose-down trim runaway that the pilot was unable to stop".
John Backhouse was an experienced and highly qualified pilot who had flown a variety of aircraft and helicopters.
He was a businessman with expertise in finance and tax who had served as a Conservative councillor in Liverpool.
"...The elevator trim was found in a significantly nose-down position, and whilst the reason for this could not be determined, it is likely it would have caused the pilot considerable difficulty in maintaining control of the aircraft...A possible scenario is a trim runaway..."
BBC News Report on result of investigation
Fatal Caernarfon Airport crash 'caused by plane fault'
A man who died in a plane crash at Caernarfon Airport may have struggled with a fault in the flight control system, an investigation has found.John Backhouse, 62, from Cheshire, was flying in his twin-engine plane from Northwich to Dublin when the crash happened on 6 September 2017.
Mr Backhouse contacted air traffic control five minutes before the crash requesting a diversion to Caernarfon.
Tests found it would have taken "substantial effort" to stay in flight.
The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) said Mr Backhouse was struggling with a pitch control problem with the elevators after requesting a diversion to Caernarfon.
Pitch relates to the angle between the nose and tail of the plane.
Eyewitnesses said they saw the plane approaching the runway at high speed.
CCTV footage showed the wings were level but the landing gear was retracted and the flight path had a very steep descent rate.
The aircraft broke up and caught fire after crashing into the runway, with the main part of the wreckage coming to rest 293m (961ft) further on.
The AAIB investigation examined whether or not Mr Backhouse had faced a runaway fault within the pitch trim system which was connected to the autopilot controls of the plane.
The report concluded that the fire damage made it difficult to determine the cause of the accident with a high level of confidence, but it was possible that there was a "nose-down trim runaway that the pilot was unable to stop".
John Backhouse was an experienced and highly qualified pilot who had flown a variety of aircraft and helicopters.
He was a businessman with expertise in finance and tax who had served as a Conservative councillor in Liverpool.
