# Incident 20010923028709I: Amtr RANSS12TWOPL, Connellsville, PA, September 23, 2001

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 23, 2001, 17:45 local time
- Place: Connellsville, PA
- Airport: Connellsville Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: To Init Climb(1st Pwr Reduct)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.0159° N, 79.5896° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Connellsville, PA, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.0159&lon=-79.5896&mi=10
- Aircraft: NONE (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: AMTR RANSS12TWOPL
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20010923028709I

## Narrative

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

(-23) THE DATE BELOW WAS COMPILED FROM WITNESS STATEMENTS, AND AN ON-SCENE INVESTIGATION CONDUCTED BY PERSONNEL FROM THE ALLEGHENY FLIGHT STANDARDS DISTRICT OFFICE, AEA-03. ON SEPTEMBER 23, 2001, AT APPROXIMATELY 17:45 P.M., MR. DAVID SHIMECK, A CERTIFICATED PILOT, WAS ACTING AS PILOT-IN-COMMAND AND SOLE OCCUPANT OF A TWO PLACE ULTRALIGHT EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT. THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT REGISTERED, AND IT DID NOT HAVE AN AIRWORTHINESS CERTIFICATE. THE PILOT HAD A CURRENT MEDICAL AND A SUSPENDED PILOT CERTIFICATE. AN INTERVIEW WAS CONDUCTED WITH MR. SCOTT PHILLIPS ON SEPTEMBER 24, 2001, A HELICOPTER PILOT FOR STAT MEDIVAC. MR. PHILLIPS WAS CLEANING HIS HELICOPTER AND WITNESSED NUMEROUS FLIGHTS ON RUNWAY 23 AND THE LAST FLIGHT ON RUNWAY 14. MR. PHILLIPS INDICATED THAT AT APPROXIMATELY 1740-1742 HOURS THE ULTRALIGHT WAS IN A 30-40 DEGREE NOSE HIGH LEFT WING DOWN ATTITUDE AT 100-150 FOOT ALTITUDE DESCENDING. MR. PHILLIPS THEN HEARD THE CRASH AND CALLED 911 AND HIS DISPATCH. HE THEN FLEW THE STAT MEDIVAC HELICOPTER TO THE SCENE, ARRIVING AT 1748 HOURS. THE FAYETTE EMS LOCATED AT THE CONNELLSVILLE AIRPORT WERE THE FIRST AT THE SCENE AND EXTRICATED MR. SHIMECK WHO WAS UNRESPONSIVE. AN ON-SCENEINVESTIGATION WAS CONDUCTED BY INSPECTOR HENRY VEJLSTRUP AND MYSELF ON SEPTEMBER 24, 2001. THE ULTRALIGHT AIRCRAFT SHOWED SIGNS OF A HARD VERTICAL IMPACT WITH THE GROUND. IN THE CLOSE PROXIMITY WERE FOUR ONE GALLON MILK BOTTLES AND ELASTIC HOLD DOWN CORDS. IN A TELEPHONE INTERVIEW WITH MR. PETER M. BURGDORFER A CO-OWNER WITH MR. SHIMECK OF ANOTHER AIRCRAFT, MR. BURGDORFER INDICATED MR. SHIMECK TRAVELED TO FLORIDA, RENTED A U-HAUL AND RETURNED WITH THE ULTRALIGHT, ASSEMBLED IT AND WAS TEST FLYING IT WHEN THE CRASH OCCURRED. MR. SHIMECK INDICATED HE WAS HAVING CENTER OF GRAVITY CONCERNS WITH THE ULTRALIGHT BEING TAIL HEAVY AND HE ADDED BALLAST TO THE NOSE, THE FOUR ONE GALLON MILK BOTTLES MENTIONED ABOVE.

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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