On May 29, 2021, at 1451 central daylight time, a PZL Warszawa-Okecie PZL-104 Wilga 35 airplane, N124MS, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at the Pearland Regional Airport (LVJ), Pearland, Texas. The pilot was fatally injured; the passenger was seriously injured. The airplane was operated as a Part 91 personal flight.
ADS-B data indicated that the flight departed the Texas Gulf Coast Regional Airport (LBX) at 1406. The pilot proceeded east and overflew a portion of Galveston Island before turning north to LVJ. He entered a left downwind for runway 14 and completed a continuous left turn from downwind to final approach. The final ADS-B data point was recorded at 1451:00 as the airplane was on short final about 51 ft from the runway arrival threshold. ADS-B data was not available for the accident sequence.
The pilot-rated passenger stated that it was a "good landing." The airplane touched down on the runway centerline and did not bounce. It was initially tracking straight down the runway until it veered to the right. The pilot applied left rudder, but the airplane did not respond. The airplane subsequently departed the runway pavement and encountered a ditch located between the runway and the parallel taxiway. She reported that there were no issues with the airplane during the accident flight.
A witness, located in a helicopter holding short of the runway at the time of the accident, reported that the airplane touched down near the 1,000-foot markers. He recalled that the main landing gear touched down briefly but the airplane became airborne again. About that time, the airplane veered to the right. It remained in a level attitude as it yawed to the right and exited the runway.
Airport surveillance video footage depicted the airplane during the downwind to final turn. The airplane appeared to be in a stabilized decent during that time. As the airplane reached short final, the camera field of view was obstructed a by a hangar on the airport. When the airplane re- a entered the field of view, the pilot initiated a landing flare. Shortly after the airplane appeared to settle onto the runway, it veered abruptly to the right, and it exited the runway pavement. The airplane subsequently encountered a ditch located between the runway and the parallel taxiway. The airplane dropped into the ditch momentarily, reappeared on the opposite side, and came to rest.
The pilot did not hold a current FAA medical certificate, and there was no record of him completing certification under the Basic Med program.
The NTSB determined the probable causes of this accident to be the pilot's loss of directional control during landing. Contributing to the severity of the accident was the presence of a drainage ditch between the runway and taxiway.
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KZhead has decided to demonetize videos of accidents that show "a strong moment of impact," regardless of context. I produce this channel because I believe that transportation safety is enhanced through transparent and accessible disclosures of the facts. If you find value in this channel's content, please consider supporting my work by clicking "Join" and becoming a channel member today.
There is no difference in perks between membership levels; join at a level that is comfortable for you. Rather than overcommitting, my promise to members is that I will continue to produce this channel's unparalleled content, just as I have for the better part of a decade. You don't have to do anything, and this channel is not going anywhere. I appreciate you all. You make this channel possible.
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00:00 Accident video
00:32 Zoomed in
00:51 Post-accident
01:33 Photos
02:06 Investigative records
03:50 Final accident report
06:11 Airframe maintenance records
08:00 Engine maintenance records
KZhead has decided to demonetize videos of accidents that show "a strong moment of impact," regardless of context. I produce this channel because I believe that transportation safety is enhanced through transparent and accessible disclosures of the facts. If you find value in this channel's content, please consider supporting my work by clicking "Join" and becoming a channel member today. There is no difference in perks between membership levels; join at a level that is comfortable for you. Rather than overcommitting, my promise to members is that I will continue to produce this channel's unparalleled content, just as I have for the better part of a decade. You don't have to do anything, and this channel is not going anywhere. I appreciate you all. You make this channel possible.
Joined. Thank you for what you do.
That's messed up. It's sad that there is no recourse for this. Just tell them it's a video game (simulator) lol
Just to clarify, has KZhead demonetized your videos? If so, that’s outrageous. I’m a pilot and mechanic and find these videos to be an excellent safety resource.
I am not exactly sure what 'a strong moment of impact' is defined as, but perhaps if it is just a segment, you could post the video without that segment, and then post the offending clip in a short separate video upload with a link in the description. That way, we could open the link in a new window, review, and come back to the primary video with the analysis, evidence, etc.; the 'impact' video could have comments turned off, with a link to the primary video. Just my thoughts.
So death is no longer politically correct? along with the Ageist attitude of many today,I can understand that.
Not much that the Robinson pilots could have done to help, but their attempt to get there as quickly as possible to render aid is admirable.
The robbie pilot is fortunate he didn't suffer a mechanical issue himself..
@@pkelly3463 was thinking the same! When I saw them tip the tail down towards the ground to slow down..I was like "WATCH THE TAIL! WATCH THE TAIL!!" That easily could have been 2 more casualties.
Seemed pretty innocuous if not for the gulley there.
Tragic accident, hope the wife can heal up from what happened.
I flew the PZL-104 Wilga 80 out of Burlington, Ontario for a few years and did some glider towing back in the mid-90’s. To say that the Wilga is a handful is an understatement. The prop is huge and the p-factor is significant. The engine & prop turns opposite to that of North American airplanes and it’s a real surprise when you add throttle quickly - especially if you try to raise the tail while doing so. It will bolt to the right and at slow speeds, the rudder really isn’t that effective. You really have to be on top of it. Having both limited time in tail draggers and limited time on type is a recipe for disaster. This isn’t a isolated incident - this happens frequently with the Wilga. Sad that this one ended with a fatality.
My first time flying was at Burlington Airpark with my brother in a rented 152. Two years later I got my PPL in St. Thomas...my home field. Cheers!
@@danielleclare2938 I flew the Wilga there (C-GCSW) from 1994 to 1997. I was living in Georgetown at the time. I got my PPL in Shearwater in 1986 and CPL in Brampton. I fly the Sikorsky S92 for Cougar now in Newfoundland. Burlington is a great little spot!!
I flew that Burlington Wilga at the same time: GCSW I was very sad when the owner decided to sell it.
I actually declined an invite to fly one because I knew nothing of em and a predjudice of Soviet Era recluses. I just didn't know enough to climb behind the stick of a plane when everyone else was drinking beer including me. I just said no went back to the Alaskan Lodge and had a few more. I was off at the time least thing I wanted to do was get a surprise CRASH course flying or copilot something while partially intoxicated. Doesn't matter to me how good I think I am or anyone else. Foreign airplanes and booze don't mix.
I am currently flying a Wilga 35A. I agree. I have found very quickly how little it is. I have gotten more used to it and it flys beautifully once you have time in it. I am used to high performance tailwheel aircraft as well but it is more of a handful because of the less rudder for sure. I have to say, the p-factor really never gave me any issues. My only rule so far is, if it gets away from you with the rudder, the tail goes down and back immediately. I have already witnessed another Wilga almost get destroyed.
Boy, that didn't look like it would be a fatality, but when you see the cockpit post-crash you can totally see it. 1:38
I'm thinking there was quite an impact before coming out of the ditch.
That only looks worse than it is because the front engine and cowling came off.... The cockpit is intact..
Hard to believe that was fatal.
It was a deep, highly angled ditch. Strong frontal impact
Same, it looked quite banal. RIP and condolences to the family.
Not too hard to believe. That impact was hard
@@LSchronic89 probably about 50mph into a V shaped ditch in a vehicle with no crumple zones. pretty hard to believe the passenger survived.
Never seen a fatal ground loop before
This is my home air field. I remember this crash happening and the other one shown on this channel with the kit plane stalling. Sucks to lose a fellow pilot
I still wonder why a hazard like that deep of a ditch, or the berm in a previous video is allowed within this close proximity of a runway.
Presumably because it saves more lives than it takes. Better to have a water-free runway.
Why? Because not every airport is LAX, and each has unique typography it has to deal with.
Pearland is not very far from the Gulf of Mexico and nearly all of the land from the gulf to northern Houston is very flat and low-lieing. It becomes swampy with just an inch or two of rain. That ditch probably becomes a pond or stream in no time.
@@TheOwenMajor I honest to God can't make out whether that typo was intentional or not 🤣
@@SaintCrownMusic Let's go with it was intentional. Typography, topography, what's the difference?
My condolences
Couple years ago I landed unknowingly the Left Tire was deflated, it was a surprise and uncontrolled veering to the left, you will not realize it until all airplane weight rested on the tires, luckily my airplane was nosewheel and the runway was wide enough to a full stop on the shoulder before reaching the grass. But in this accident, from the Marks on the runway, looks like the Right Wheel Brake got Locked Up momentarily which at this point you can't go around at the same time you can't control the direction or utilize the rudder/elevator (tailwheel) due to low airspeed. Rest in Peace fellow pilot.
I believe that as well,that one wheel had the brake and the other didn't. God, it just seemed all was well until that sudden turn.
I'm a tailwheel instructor and there's one critical piece of information missing from this report: Did the pilot attempt a go-around when he lost control? I think he did, but I can't tell for sure. The propeller pattern changes at 0:44, and the plane appears to accelerate off the runway. Many of my students tell me verbally that if they ever lose control, they will add power to regain rudder authority. I specifically tell them not to do that, since it will just take them to the crash site at a higher energy state. I would like to use this video as an example of that mistake, but the NTSB report does not say anything about power inputs. No written statement from the passenger was included, and the 2:20 narrative does not mention it The witness statements that are included would not have been able to hear the engine's power setting. The NTSB does not appear to have investigated whether the pilot gave this control input, or not. Seems to be a learning opportunity lost. Just my opinion - the power setting of the engine throughout the sequence is a critical detail in any loss-of-control accident.
How could a ground looping taildragger do a go-around?
@@philipmartin708 When a ground loop starts, you instinctively push the opposite rudder all the way to the floor, but find that it's not effective enough to overcome the aircraft's angular momentum (the cg rotating around the main wheels). It's tempting to push the throttle forward to increase the airflow over the rudder, and regain directional stability. This does actually work - if you catch it early enough, the thrust pulling the airplane forward overcomes the frictional force of the tires, makes the aircraft directionally-stable, and stops the ground loop. Unfortunately, now you're in a directionally-stable aircraft accelerating off the side of a runway, which is why I instruct people not to do it unless they have a very wide runway or are pointing at an empty field.
Yeah, judging by the force with which it hit the berm, that's what I was thinking. Wonder if the wife was flying and the husband took the controls when things went south. The tail-wheel endorsement is not to be taken lightly. Instruction should be given in something docile, and no sign-offs until the student can demonstrate a few drama-free, crosswind wheel landings. I towed gliders with L-19s at a field with regular gusty crosswinds. A number of our planes were wrecked and damaged by folks with neither the aptitude nor the skills (friends of the boss, etc.....).
@@jiyushugi1085 I can relate to your statement "until the student can demonstrate a few drama-free crosswind landings" I was signed off in a C-140 with virtually no wheel-landing competence. With a strong, gusty crosswind I went around twice, and finally got it on the ground without any damage. I was just lucky.
@@philipmartin708 Same for me when I got my endorsement. In retrospect I realized that the 'instructors' are reluctant to teach wheel landings because they don't want to risk having their planes dinged up, which is understandable. This is one reason so many planes get wrecked by owners who think they're qualified. Once one masters the wheel landing though, they're great fun and a source of real satisfaction.
Fml why is there a ditch next to the runway?
Who designed this airfield - a ditch near the runway???
Could you please look into a video of Jason from rebuild rescue **hard landing** in Pennsylvania; I believe. He had a flat tire that happened on taxi before take off, and when he landed he went off runway and nose dived into the grass.
I'm confused. The Fire Chief stated the pilot was in the left seat, wife said pilot was in the left seat and she was in the right, but student in the helicopter said woman was in the left seat and pilot in the right. I'll re-read, it went fast. Was she aware her husband didn't have current medical? She flew part of the flight. Have to question if she has current medical also. 🤔
If you had shown the video without explaining the outcome, I would have thought everyone lived, based on the angle of the video.
Jeez. Great spot to have an uncovered drainage ditch..... poor bugger.
To avoid the censorship run this channel on Rumble (also).
It's hard to see but it certainly looks like full right rudder right after touchdown followed by left rudder and right aileron.
Why was that fatal? Simple ground loop and he hit a ditch? Seems very unlucky to be fatal
Ahhh, but I “have seen this”..BACK in 2021.
Silly having the runway and channel so close to each other.
Ground loops are something to be avoided, but I usually think of them as merely a way to damage the airplane and embarrass myself. This is a strong reminder that a ground loop can be so much worse than that.
I fly a cub, which, I imagine, is much less difficult in ground operations than the wilga. I can vouch that it only takes a small unexpected wind variation on a straight stick landing rollout to cause it to want to veer off the runway. At roll-out speed and with unexpected crosswind gust, the rudder and tailwheel steering, in my experience, are almost useless. The only workable options are full aileron input (adverse yaw steering) and most expediently, differential braking. I believe braking wasn't available to the husband in the right hand seat who was flying the plane. My condolences to all concerned
There are are brakes on both sides of the Wilga so that rules that out. It just has a small amount of rudder compared to others
The entire NTSB report seemed pretty sketchy to me. Lots of inconsistencies, and they didn't even consider wake turbulence as a cause. Helicopters create a large circular area of wake turbulence. If the plane was downwind of the helicopter, wake turbulence likely blew it off the runway. The ditch made the crash fatal.
Sketchy? It was a ground loop. All tail draggers WILL ground loop eventually. Nothing special.
@@TheOwenMajor Either, or both, was possible. The report seemed sketchy because the cause was so vague. "Loss of control" is a useless finding if the reason for that loss isn't at least considered.
@@fixitman2174 It's a GA accident. I don't mean to be rude, but who cares? There is no way to conclusively know. And both ground looping and wake turbulence are well-known dangers. You seem to imply the NTSB was doing something wrong, what were you expecting?
Nah I'm a tailwheel instructor and this happens all the time. This accident looks like what my students try to do on just about every lesson. I doubt wake turbulence has anything to do with it, it's just too typical-looking.
I've considered your helicopter wake turbulence theory. It's a good theory if the wind was strong enough and blowing the right direction. I went to Kathryn's Report to get the wind at the time of the accident. It reads " 3 knots / , " So based on that, it's unlikely the chopper turbulence was a factor.
So why did it veer to the right? And why did the alleged input of left rudder not work?
something to do with the brakes I'd say, I can't think of another possible cause other than a flat tire or tail-wheel malfunction.
Goundloop
Ever push a shopping cart backwards? Doesn't want to go straight on its own does it? Same thing for tailwheel aircraft.
It was a hard landing, maybe they blew a tyre/collapsed the gear? Rudder is only good with enough authority...
@@gogogeedus Might have been a partly seized brake caliper causing it to pull.
Oh my. That was fatal? I think landing procedures should include NASCAR equipment.
Looks like the pilot might have attempted to stop a developing ground loop with power that took him into the ditch faster than the speed it looked like he even touched down with.
Read the passenger/witness statement.
I don't have time or a large enough screen to read it. But thanks for your helpful recommendation.
@@bw162 There was no mention of opening the throttle after touchdown.
@@philipmartin708 I am not sure I would rely upon there being no "mention" of opening the throttle. Opposite rudder and a 'jab' of the throttle used to be taught for stopping a ground loop. I was making an observation of his leaving the runway at a 90-degree angle and then going some distance and even becoming 'airborne' momentarily at a speed that seemed even higher than what was a VERY slow nose high touch down speed. During the 90-degree turn on the runway, the wing remained almost level which also supports a very slow speed for an abrupt turn. It's been many years and thousands of hours since my tail-dragger flying in a C140, but for this type of aircraft, that looked fast for what appeared as a slow touch down speed and subsequent travel off the runway, across an infield, through a recess where he became airborne before coming to a stop in a ditch. But, like most, my opinion is merely conjecture based on what I saw and my own experience in very light tail-draggers. Additionally, that was a lot of damage, and death, for what otherwise would likely have been a slow impact.
@@bw162 You made a very good case with much relevant info. After reading your comment I zoomed in and used the slowest playback speed. It looked like the propeller did speed up about halfway through the turn. Some commenter said those have very strong P Factor to the right. Thank you for your thoughtful and informative reply.
So many nice tail draggers being wrecked because the pilots don't know how to fly them. This accident is good example of why you should always do a wheel landing on a high-wing tail dragger. This guy (or the gal) did a three-point landing which is bad for two reasons: the rudder is mostly blanked out by the wing and is almost ineffective, and the wings high AOA means it's producing more lift than it would with the tail high. Failure to use left aileron was another mistake. The typical reason that many of these pilots do 3-point landings is because they lack the skills and confidence to do wheel landings.
Jesus what a horrible place for a ditch...
Time to move to Rumble!
KZhead needs to let the viewers decide which videos deserve monetization. The last thing we need is some desk jockey being the morality police and trying to soft censor content they don’t like.
Big Tech knows what's best for you, not fellow citizens. They all have censorship boards. No violence, no misgendering people, etc.
One reply already censored on this comment🫣
@@mertonallowicious It was likely one of those "you won something, contact me on Telgrm" scam comments. Whenever I report them, (I always try to) the comment disappears but it still shows up as a reply that wont load. But who knows. KZhead be funny like that.
There are pilots who have groundlooped, and pilots who will . So the saying went in taildragger days of yore.
Lost Directional controls to a horrible Ground loop
Didn’t look like much of a ground-loop. Could have been developing but maybe stopped. The plane only rotated 90-degrees and the wings appeared to remain horizontal through the rotation.
@@bw162 This is a "ground loop" in Wilga terms. It is very hard to steer it past a certain point.
The left seat has brakes for sure maybe not the right seat and he didn't have brake control so asking her to do the braking and then jamming full left rudder will move her right pedal back (full brake right side) and move the left pedal away (no brake left side). That would account for the loss of control. Or she was accidentally on the brake.
Consider the sequence of your hypothesis.
@@philipmartin708 Consider the trolling of your cowardly nonsense
@@danielleclare2938 What makes my reply either cowardly or nonsense?
Right seat always has brakes in the WIlga no questions asked. There has never been one set of brakes on either side in the Wilga series. That has nothing to do with it.
The cheapest engineering for water control is deadly both for aircraft and cars. Sad they couldn't do subterranean water control system instead of a large hole.
Wife saying it was a good landing indicates they did not know how to fly the Wilga. Too much speed and not aligned, high-energy ground loop. I couldn’t see much rudder action.
Wilgas are far different than taildraggers. Similar but very different in terms of how they act. They are not as light as they seem.
Who really was in command?
KZhead should be ASHAMED of themselves
They made them in my city, so sad to see this 😢
Dxein dobry .
Could you slow down the captions a little they switch a little quick and yes I can pause them but on a tv it blocks it whenever you Ouse
KZhead really are starting to annoy me. I wish there was an alternative that people could get behind.
Tge Wilga is not very crashworthy. I witnessed a fatal accident of one in 1984
Take a look at the Nigel Farage crash in the UK in a Wilga. He and the pilot made it out okay. Very severe crash. It's all the luck of the draw.....
@@Jamesg33 Yes - they were very lucky. In the crash I witnessed, the pilot was killed because the big radial engine was pushed back into the cockpit.
Looks like zero rudder input.
tail dragger typical ground loop
One of the sketchiest r22 pickups I’ve ever seen. Yikes.
I have never seen a fatal ground loop
And you didn't in this video either.
@@philipmartin708 definitely a ground loop. To bad he ended up hitting that embankment, he would have survived otherwise.
@@johnmajane3731 I knew he ground looped. And you're right. It was the ground loop that ultimately sent him into the embankment. My comment was dumb.
@@philipmartin708 been there done that. No issues.
Stupid design to have a ditch like that... Engineering Fail.
👍👍
It look like someone can walk away without a scratch from what I'm seeing. Nonetheless RIP.
The impact didn't look bad in the video, but in the post accident photos it clearly was way more violent than it looked.
Did the pilot get ejected from the plane? what that dark blob after it hit the ditch?R.I.P And yes KZhead blows now!!!
Nose of the airplane was torn off and laying there.
KZhead demonetizing videos like this is like giving them a PG-13 rating for "thrilling scenes" or "intense content."
KZhead is demonetizing everything, even remotely potentially upsetting. They claim that it is to protect people, but I have to wonder if fewer monetized videos means that they get a bigger cut of the check. It’s all bullshit.
That ditch is to blame ! - the comment section
Sad
Doesn’t look fatal to me but stranger things have happened
Oh shoot you tube why dwmonitize these videos. You should pay them double because these are Teachable moments and that the pilots that comment them or comment on them use these to teach those of us who are pilots what not to do in order to keep us safe so you’re actually hurting the public by doing this but everybody wants to be held their little dictators OK
I would make a channel on Rumble maybe they would start to monetize when they get strong enough.
After my friend crashed & burned I quit flying.
People crash and burn in cars all the time. Have you stopped driving yet?
God,please God and JESUS Bless them and their family and friends
Anybody else find the wife a little suspect?
no
Looks like a pair of feet, sitting on the rudder peddles, doing nothing but resting !
Not true at all. If that was the case, the aircraft would have ground looped on the pavement. I have enough time in a Wilga to know right away.
I am thinking the pilot rated female "I am guessing the wife" took a huge risk and on purpose stomped on the rudder pedal in hopes of killing the pilot in order to collect on a huge life insurance policy.
the wife killed him
the poor design of that airport killed that pilot.
Agree somewhat, the drainage ditch isn’t in best location
@@buckbuchanan5849 if that drainage ditch wasn't there would the pilot have most likely not only survived but also saved the plane?
@@cptkirkpyro5656 it’s possible. Maybe would’ve bent a wingtip in a ground loop, but I’m confident nobody would’ve died
I saw the way that ditch pulled him in , it looked so menacing and hungry .
@@buckbuchanan5849 i agree 100%. Im honestly shocked that this type of thing is allowed.
My first viewing of the video, I said what is that helicopter doing on the Runway while a plane is landing. I was shocked to hear a helicopter was practicing a hover drill near an active Runway. If I investigated I would wonder if the pilot saw the helicopter and tried to avoid a crash? I am sorry about his death. I hope his Widow can answer if he may have tried to avoid the Helicopter? God Bless All involved.
Helicopters air taxi around airports all the time, absolutely not surprising or abnormal to pilots. Helicopters doing flight training at airports do some things that may be surprising to airplane pilots but this particular Robinson wasn't doing any of those things.
@@wgmskiing I wonder if you were in a Helicopter dancing around the active Runway and you were trying to land in a plane all the sudden you see Mr. Helicopter sitting in your path? Actually study the video from the airplane pilots view.
The helicopter wasn't on the runway...
@@karenfyhr2363 Watch the video from the airplanes point of view. Dang what is that helicopter doing on my Runway. Hit the brakes and the front wheel locks up.
In flight nagging most likely.
How crappy are these planes built? That's ridiculous that someone lost their life in that accident. A 1970 Pinto had better safety features
The planes are built beautifully and far better than modern Textron aircraft. It was not the aircraft but the pilot with a lack of understanding how the Wilga flies. Cars take more lives than aircraft anyway. I love both but I will always make sure to keep that in mind.
had a farm by a airport,,, small planes need to outlawed,,, we had tow strap on the tractor to pull these planes back almost weekly,,, dangerous hobby
Driving is far more dangerous than flying. Always keep that in mind. Small planes keep farms alive as well. "We should really outlaw the use of farm tractors powered by diesel and gas and should be electric only." That's how ridiculous your statement sounds.
Looked like it was on purpose, maybe Life Insurance?
First
Are you serious?
@@bw162 🤣🤣..I think so
This site is the worst one on the internet for covering airport crashes there is no commentary and you get a third of the way through Reading and it goes to a different page this site is total rubbish
Are you to slow hit the pause button?...most people don't read at a 1st grade level so he does this to save video time... We don't need a 4-Hour long video just so you can read three pages of text..
Pause the video. Read at your leisure.
AC in hangar NOT the same as shown ground looping.
Get over it. If it was not for this channel you would not even be seeing half these accidents. You could always go jump through all the hoops and pull you own FOIA requests and put together something better.