The pilot was trying to land at Riverside Municipal Airport after experiencing engine trouble. No one on the ground was hurt.
The wreckage of a small aircraft lies crumpled in the driveway of a house on Adams Street just south of Arlington Avenue in Riverside following a crash that killed the pilot on Sunday, July 26, 2015.
DAVID BAUMAN, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
BY RICHARD BROOKS / STAFF WRITER
Published: July 26, 2015
RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA
A pilot died Sunday during the fiery crash of a single-engine Beech 35 Bonanza plane near Riverside Municipal Airport, narrowly missing two houses.
"The pilot of a single-engine
Beechcraft BE35 reported a loss of engine power before crashing in a
residential neighborhood about a half-mile east of Riverside Municipal
Airport," Federal Aviation Administration officials told NBC4.
The pilot, who was the only person on board, radioed the airport shortly before the 5:03 p.m. crash, telling of engine trouble and requested permission for an emergency landing at the airport, said Riverside Fire Capt. Tim Odebralski.
“I don’t think I’m going to make it,” the pilot said in his final radio transmission, according to Odebralski.
The pilot was the only person aboard the plane. The body remained inside the wreckage until after dark and had not been identified.
No one on the ground was hurt.
The white and blue Beechcraft Bonanza landed upside-down in the backyard of a house on the southeast corner of Adams Street and San Vicente Avenue, just south of Arlington Avenue.
Richard and Doris Godfrey have lived in that house for more than 55 years.
“They were just sitting down to have dinner,” said son-in-law Keith Burke. “There was a crash, and the backyard was engulfed in flames – lots and lots of smoke.”
Doris immediately called 911.
“Before she even got through ... the Fire Department was here and extinguishing the flames,” Burke said.
The plane landed squarely in the couple’s backyard. Neither their house nor their neighbors’, about 40 feet away, was damaged by the plane or the flames. Only the Godfreys’ backyard fence was destroyed.
The Godfreys were grateful they escaped injury, but uncertain how they avoided it.
“Either skillful flying ... or just luck,” Burke suggested.
“Our heart goes out to the family of the pilot and the loss they suffered this evening,” he said.
While most of the reckage ended up in the Godfreys‘ yard, small pieces were strewn against the perimeter fence of Adams Elementary School, across the street from the house.
Power lines bordering the elementary school lay coiled on the ground, apparently snapped during the crash. A one-block stretch of Adams was closed between San Vicente and Brunswick Avenue for several hours after the crash.
Date: 26-JUL-2015
Time: 17:00+
Type:
Beech 35 Bonanza
Owner/operator:
Registration:
C/n / msn:
Fatalities: Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities: 0
Airplane damage: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location: East of Riverside Municipal Airport (KRAL), Riverside, California -
United States of America Phase: Approach
Nature: Unknown
Departure airport:
Destination airport: Riverside Muni (KRAL)
Narrative:
Following a loss of engine power, the aircraft force landed to an urban roadway east of the Riverside Municipal Airport (KRAL), in Riverside, California. The airplane was destroyed by the impact with obstacles and the post-impact fire. The sole pilot onboard the aircraft received fatal injuries.
Sources:
http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=178078
http://www.pe.com/articles/riverside-774820-municipal-plane.html
http://ktla.com/2015/07/26/small-plane-crashes-bursts-into-flames-in-riverside-firefighters-on-scene/
http://abc7.com/news/small-plane-crashes-in-yard-of-riverside-home;-pilot-killed/884147/
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Small-Plane-Crashes-Riverside-County-318592261.html#