MU2 crash in Florida?

[bfisk]

Hey all,

Rumor has it that a cargo MU2 crashed in Florida recently, supposedly after an engine failure just after take-off. Anyone got any info on this one? Would be greatly appreciated.

[OVERTALK]

Associated Press

FORT PIERCE, Fla. - A South Carolina pilot was killed Sunday when a twin-engine plane crashed in a wooded area shortly after takeoff, authorities said.
Stephen P. Hodges, 57, of Myrtle Beach, S.C., was the only person aboard when the plane went down just north of Fort Pierce near U.S. 1, St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara said in a news release.
The plane, which was destroyed beyond recognition in the crash and subsequent fire, had flown to St. Lucie International Airport from the Bahamas earlier Sunday. The plane landed and passengers disembarked before Hodges took off again, Mascara said.
Witnesses reported that the plane took off into dark skies, experienced engine trouble and crashed with only one of the plane's two engines still operating.
Hodges was en route to Murfreesboro, Tenn., about 30 miles southeast of Nashville, said Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen.
The twin-engine Mitsubishi MU-2B-60 is registered to Flyin Cloud LLC of North Myrtle Beach, S.C., according to the FAA. No telephone listing for the company was available.
The National Transportation Safety Board and FAA were sending investigators to the scene.

[LGW Vulture]

Very long article but extremely pertinent given this latest incident...!

http://www.aviationnow.com/avnow/search/autosuggest.jsp?docid=594083&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aviationnow.com%2Favnow%2Fnews%2Fchanne l_bca_story.jsp%3Fview%3Dstory%26id%3Dnews%2Fmu2_0206.xml

[MEON VALLEY FLYER]

Just an off the cuff remark but:

While waiting to depart at Ormond Beach, FL some years ago. There was a MU2 (dont know models, but had tip tanks) taking off. It was a typical Florida warm day and he needed most of the concrete to get airbourne and clear the trees to the North (from remoery this was the logest runway at Ormond, tip to the s/s/w, trees to the n/n/e. )

How marginal are these birds, compared to say an aerostar, another regular at Ormond in those days (1997)

[stator vane]

i am not an aerodynamic engineer by any means, but from what i have seen--there is a beauty to every GOOD flying machine i have seen. the top of the list being the B757, now being overtaken by the B777. and from what i read, the aerodynamics are rich in those two good looking aircraft.

and when i first saw the MU2, i knew right away i did not want to fly that machine--ever!!! even before i had learned what little i have about aerodynamics. on the ramp, we would call them, "four trash cans strapped together."

and the fact that when re-fueling it, there could only be a 25 gallon difference when putting fuel into the tip tanks, struck me as a sign of instability. the lear 24 could take a 50 gallon spread, and it had a reputation as a pilot eater.

i only personally knew one individual who had flown the MU2 and it had almost killed him in a crash.

an aircraft to avoid in his estimation.

[bfisk]

Wow. Sad story, this one. :(

[Looooong haul]

i am not an aerodynamic engineer by any means, but from what i have seen-

I guess you have not read the link provided above to an excellent balanced article about the aircraft type. I think that it is better to talk contents rather than emotion. It is an aircraft type in the same skies we fly in and a good discussion is better than an observation without having flown the aircraft.

I have flown the aircraft as a f/o for a short while after my CPL and it is a great aircraft but you need to be switched on. The guy in the LHS was old fashioned and rigid in sticking to the rules and the aircraft needed it. It is a great little aircraft! :D

[Mercenary Pilot]

MU2...Ugly???:confused: What ?!?

http://photos.airliners.net/photos/middle/7/4/0/0940047.jpg

[Hansol]

Pretty from the front, but sideways on it's a bit of a brick !

[Mercenary Pilot]

Huh?!? Hardly a brick? This is going off thread now. :suspect:
http://photos.airliners.net/photos/middle/2/9/1/0228192.jpg

[JustAnothrWindScreen]

I've always liked the looks of the MU-2. If it flys like a jet... so much the better.

[Airbusgirl78]

Steve Hodges taught me to fly the MU-2 the spring/fall of 2002. It was a challenging aircraft to fly and Steve always did his best to make sure that every flight was conducted safely. What he taught me then has been of great value in my life and my career.

I don`t know if my comment has anything to do with what has been said in this thread but I just wanted to have it said that he was a true professional, great pilot and person that will be missed so much by everybody who had the good fortune of knowing him.

My haert goes out to his family and friends.

[Ag2A320]

IMHO,
After 1000 Hrs PIC on the Mits, the aircraft has the potential to hurt you but which aircraft doesnt, I was taught years ago to fly it like a jet by the numbers and not by feel, which was a hard transition after flying Ag for years, A mitsi does everything as advertised unlike some other twin turboprops and is a steady 300KT performer, that will get in and out of 2500ft at gross climb to FL 250 and fly 1000nm. I would pick the MU-2 over any legacy turbine twin - Kingair 90,100,200, Gulfstream AC 1000, Conquest I,II or Piper Cheyenne all adaptations of existing slower piston designs. I've flown most , loved the Kingair 200, and Cheyenne 400LS, but for value for the money one can't beat an MU-2 (short or long body).

The B/CA article highlights the rumours but uses alot of fact to debunk the B/S and armchair flying by pilots that have never set foot in a Mits. Some pilots have flown it and hated, everybody is entitled to their options, but i tell those that i have encountered that they have probably flown one that wasnt properly rigged. plus it takes up to 100hrs PIC to start to feel comfortable with the aircraft, well it took me that long ; A PROPERLY RIGGED MU-2 IS A DREAM TO FLY! ; in fact will fly an ILS single engine fully config'd handsoff - no autopilot set the trims and leave it alone all one needs to do is adjust the FF to stay on the glide; POORLY rigged and incorrectly trimmed ,it is a handfull and and has the potential to be downright vicious; the flaps and flight idle fuel flow MUST be set correctly; a 1 degree spilt in the flaps at 20 will cause all a pretty nasty roll during retraction from flaps 5 to 0 and WILL kill you if something goes wrong. As an A&P/IA, Id always tripple check any work on the flaps & engines: some mechanics and pilots, dont want to take the time to correctly rig them as it can take up to 10hrs to set the flaps and flight idle properly. I have been scared sh--less in mitsis, mostly ferrying aircraft bought from other freight operators, ramp queens and the odd sales demo with a pilot new to the MU-2 whose standard multi technique resurfaced even after a indepth brief of the differences between the MU-2 and rest of GA Light twins.

I was lucky enough to work for a 135 operator that understood the need to have a proper training syallabus and brought Mr. Reece Howell of Howell Enterprises, Smyrna TN :-www.mu2b.com (http://www.mu-2b.com) to supervise the ground school and provided a fair and frank picture of the aircraft. we were required to review all the accidents back to 1967, read the FAA Special Certificate Reviews on the MU-2's and watch the icing video and the clear picture is that the largest factor is the Pilot, which is true for many other aircraft. Reece taught a quick memory item for rough trimming the aircraft during an EFTO its called the .357 rule : 3 units nose up, 5 seconds on the roll servo : (to remove spoiler deflection and center the control yoke) and 7 units of opposite rudder, we'd snicker in ground school, On the checkride damn if it didnt work! The Mits served me well honing my IFR skills , i went from the left seat of a mits to right seat of a 727 and subsequently transitioned to other large jets and have found the need for pitch awareness,proper use of trim (all axis)and the inclusion of the IVSI in visual approaches very simliar between most Jets and the Mu-2;( the A-320 family being the exception as the FPV & Autotrim makes it so easy its almost a no brainer) I still maintain currency on a short body and believe that to safely fly a mits,one must fly a min of 50hrs a year. I have flown most of the much maligned GA aircraft:- V-Tail Bonanzas, Aerostars 700s ,Mitsi's, and Lears 24,25 and loved them all and hold them in high regard. inspite of the names- Doctor Killer, Tokyo Whore, Twin Honda, FearJet and Lawn Dart.

[Elias]

Very nice and informative post Sir. It's nice to read something that doesn't start: " I've heard that..", " It looks like..."... and so on.

[Confabulous]

Nice to see some good opinions about the aircraft finally emerging. I'm not a MU-2 pilot, but the FAA's Safety Report (http://www.faa.gov/aircraft/air_cert/design_approvals/small_airplanes/cos/mu2_foia_reading_library/media/MU-2%20Final%20Dec%2030%202005%20with%20errata.pdf) concludes that the aircraft is safe once pilots are properly trained. Actually, after reading the report I understand why the aircraft had such a bad reputation - a few of its critical handling characteristics are non-instinctive if not properly trained for, like any high performance aircraft.