SEA95FA111

Approximately two minutes after takeoff, witnesses saw the airplane pull up sharply into a steep climb from underneath an 800-foot ceiling. The airplane went into an uncontrolled, nearly vertical dive and impacted into a river. The pilot did not hold multi-engine or instrument ratings. Individuals who knew the pilot, including an instructor who had flown with him, stated that they had doubted the pilot's competence but that the pilot had been confident of his own flying ability.

History of flight

On June 1, 1995, approximately 1554 PDT, an Aero Commander 680, N6877S, was destroyed in an inflight collision with water adjacent to the North Bend, OR municipal airport. The commercial pilot/co-owner, whose pilot certificate carried only an airplane single-engine land category and class rating, and his two passengers were fatally injured. The flight was a local 14 CFR 91 flight out of North Bend. Instrument meteorological conditions existed but no flight plan had been filed.

The crew of a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter which had just landed at North Bend, CG6552, saw the airplane take off on runway 31. The pilot-in-command of CG6552 stated that he became concerned about this since the 800-foot ceiling was below minimum weather requirements for normal visual flight rules (VFR) and he had not heard the pilot of this airplane call for or receive an air traffic control (ATC) clearance to operate in North Bend's Class E surface area airspace under either special visual flight rules (SVFR) or instrument flight rules (IFR). He radioed a warning to the crew of another Coast Guard helicopter, CG6529, which was inbound to North Bend from the west on a SVFR clearance, to watch out for the airplane. The pilot-in-command of CG6552 stated that from the Coast Guard wash rack parking spot on the airport, he saw the airplane continue straight ahead after takeoff and enter the clouds in a wings-level climb.

Several members of the crew of CG6529, the airborne Coast Guard helicopter inbound to North Bend from the west, witnessed the water impact. They stated that they initially spotted the airplane as it passed between 400 and 1300 feet off to the right of their helicopter, about 100 feet higher than the helicopter and in a steep climb. Some crew members stated that the airplane went into the clouds in this climb. Ten to twenty seconds later, they spotted the airplane again, this time in a near vertical dive. They described the airplane's flight path in the dive as going from directly over their helicopter, downward and outward along the helicopter's 3-o'clock line and into the Coos River in a near vertical attitude. CG6529 was approximately over the settling ponds immediately across the Coos River from, and to the west of, North Bend airport at the time of the initial sighting. The co-pilot, who was flying the helicopter, stated that CG6529 was eastbound at approximately 100 to 110 knots and 500 feet altitude at the time of the event.

A weather observer at the North Bend airport also witnessed portions of the accident sequence including the water impact. He stated that at approximately 1545 PDT, the pilot of N6877S called him on the North Bend UNICOM frequency for a radio check and then taxied N6877S to runway 31. He said that he then heard the pilot of N6877S call on UNICOM that he was taking runway 31, and saw the airplane take off from runway 31. A certified copy of the North Bend airport flight contact record was annotated "COM 6877S 1545 T/O R/W 31 (MISHAP)". At this time he went off shift from weather observation duties and went out to the edge of Runway 4 to perform bird control and foreign object removal from the runway. From a vantage point approximately 2000 feet east of the impact point, he said his attention was drawn to the aircraft by high-pitched engine noise. He stated that looking up, he saw the airplane in a near vertical dive, impacting the water in this attitude with a slight roll rate to the right.

Another individual witnessed approximately 40 to 50 seconds of the flight immediately before water impact from his front yard, about 1/2 mile southeast of the impact point. This witness stated that he initially saw the airplane climbing to the west, then suddenly make a steep-banked turn of almost 360 degrees. He reported that the turn descended back to the runway at which point the airplane followed a takeoff ground track. The airplane then disappeared behind trees. The witness said the airplane then reappeared in an almost vertical climb, then pivoted around its left wing and entered a near vertical dive. The witness then heard the water impact, but did not see it since the impact point was obstructed from view by terrain. He stated that the engines sounded very smooth and powerful with no sounds of missing or backfiring throughout the sequence, characterizing them as going "full bore" at the time of impact. This witness stated that the airplane never entered the clouds.

Two individuals witnessed portions of the event from the vicinity of a lumber chip dock on the opposite river bank northwest of the airport. One reported that after takeoff, the airplane stopped climbing and made a "flat turn" to the west over his position, then made a banked 90-degree turn to the south. This witness stated that the airplane then disappeared into the clouds in level flight and that he observed no more of the sequence. He reported that the airplane made a "very loud engine noise" with an "odd 'heavy throb' sound". The other witness made the following statement:

...I saw a twin engined [aircraft] take off from the airport heading in a Northwesterly direction. This aircraft attracted my attention because it was extremely loud.... The plane disappeared into the overcast....

In a very short time, 2-3 minutes, my attention was directed to the Coast Guard [helicopter] flying in an easterly direction, or up the Bay, and at this time I saw the plane come out of the overcast and it appeared to me that it was going to collide with the chopper but it passed to its rear. To me it appeared that it came within about 100 feet of the chopper. At this time it seemed to have about 200 ft. elevation. It suddenly pulled up [sharply], almost vertical and disappeared into the overcast.

In just a very short time, possibly seconds, it plunged out of the overcast in an almost vertical flight and crashed into the Bay about 25 to 30 yards from the shore line into shallow water. There was one big splash - then nothing. Something was sticking out of the water, but I [couldn't] tell what portion of the plane it was. Prior to the crash I saw no smoke or fire and I believe the landing gear was still retracted.

I can't say for sure how the engines were operating, if they were on full power or not. There was no apparent rotation by the plane, as if in a spin. It was headed in a south- westerly direction when it crashed.

There were buildings, etc. directly in front of the aircraft when it pulled up into the overcast just prior to the crash....

This witness supplied a sketch with his written statement indicating that the airplane turned left after takeoff, continuing around approximately 270 degrees to an easterly heading over the water. He also indicated the path of the Coast Guard helicopter on his statement, which showed that as seen by him, the airplane passed behind and to the right of the helicopter on an approximately parallel ground track just before the accident.

The Coast Guard took a statement from a witness which read as follows:

At approximately 1550...I witnessed a twin engine plane come from an Easterly direction sloping down to approximately 100 feet from the parking lot at the BLM boat ramp on the North Bend Spit. He then pulled up into the air, made a wide loop and came nearly vertical into the water of Coos Bay. His engines seemed to be nearly full throttle during the entire time....

The Coast Guard provided a tape recording of the North Bend Coast Guard Air Station operations center radio traffic at the time of the accident. On this tape, approximately two minutes elapsed between the radioed warning from the pilot of CG6552 that an aircraft had just taken off from runway 31, and a call from CG6529's crew