# Accident 20000417038519A: Cvac BT13A, Pearl Harbor, HI, April 17, 2000

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 17, 2000, 11:06 local time
- Place: Pearl Harbor, HI
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Low Level Operations
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 21.3594° N, 157.9394° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=21.3594&lon=-157.9394&mi=10
- Aircraft: N56336, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N56336-2000-08-23) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Convair BT-13A (registry code 2420204, https://openairdocs.org/model/convair-bt-13a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CVAC BT13A
- Reported engine: PWA R1340AN1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 6,100 total, 1,000 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX00FA159](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00FA159) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000417038519A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) AT THE TERMINATION OF A LOW PASS OVER THE MOVIE SET, THE AIRCRAFTS LEFT WING COLLIDED WITH A 40 FOOT TALL PALM TREE, SEVERING THE OUTBOARD 18 FEET OF THE WING. (.4) THE PILOT WAS FLYING A REPLICA JAPANESE VAL DURING THE FILMING OF 'PEARL HARBOR' ON FORD ISLAND, HAWAII. THE MOVIE SHOT CALLED FOR A LOW PASS OF THREE VAL'S OVER A MOVIE SET WITH 65-FOOT-TALL PALM TREES. THE NUMBER 2 AND 3 WINGMEN WERE TO STACK UP (ABOVE) ON THE FLIGHT LEADER NUMBER 1. AT THE COMPLETION OF THE PASS, THE NUMBER 3 WINGMAN'S LEFT WING CONTACTED A PALM TREE, SEVERING ABOUT 18 FEET OF LEFT WING. THE AIRPLANE ROLLED TWICE AND DESCENDED INTO THE GROUND. THE PILOT WAS WEARING A 5-POINT RESTRAINT SYSTEM AND SURVIVED WITH SERIOUS INJURIES. VIDEO AND FILM WERE VIEWED TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT SMOKE CREATED BY SMOKE GENERATORS FOR THE MOVIE SHOT WERE A FACTOR AFFECTING THE PILOT'S VIEW OF THE PALM TREES. THE PILOT REPORTED THE SMOKE WAS NOT AN ISSUE. THE LAST THING HE RECALLED WAS TURBULENCE FROM THE FLIGHT LEADER.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB LAX00FA159](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00FA159), Apr 17, 2000: Convair BT-13A (N56336), Pearl Harbor, HI, destroyed. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to anticipate turbulence from the formation lead airplane. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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