NTSB Final Report Addison King Air Crash 

I am now 70 and finding that always using checklists -- which I rarely did when flying single pilot as a young person -- is actually a comfort and a confidence-builder. When my 77-year old pilot wife is with me, we try to emulate airline-style CRM that we learned by watching RU-vid cockpit videos. It might look a little silly, but these tools are a great help in keeping we older people in the air as long as possible.

This case was near to me... both geographically and personally. I flew many many hours with the PIC.. In fact, I began my career with him. I have many stories, good and bad flying with him. He taught me a lot by showing me what not to do. The sad truth is that I and many others that flew with him believed strongly that we would some day read about him. My hope was that he would be alone when it happened. My worst fear came to be when I received the call and learned the plane was full. Horrible. I often stress over whether or not I could have done anything to prevent this. As a person, Howard was a good man. As a pilot he was scary. His bulk of experience made him complacent and overconfident. His stubbornness kept him in the cockpit despite his bad ankle and old age. There are a lot of lessons that all pilots can learn about this crash. The sad part is, we should all ALREADY know these lessons. Be humble and don't let your experience let you believe you are beyond mistakes or above SOP. And Keep your stick and rudder skills sharp. We have moved into an age where stick and rudder skills are declining and they are paramount to a baseline of safety. You simply have to maintain those skills. Another less obvious lesson that I think a lot of pilots are forgetting is to look outside when you can. I have no doubt Howard had his head buried in the cockpit despite it being VMC. If he had looked outside and flown the damned aircraft they would all still be alive.

Thank you I had an Instrutor he told me I don’t use check lists it takes to long. Got a new flight instructor the next day.

I remember during my PPL flight training, that i found it difficult to control the yoke one-handed during landing. When i expressed this to my flight intructor, he explained it to me straight and simple; "Without your hand on the throttle, you don't have full control of the airplane." This has always stayed in my head ever since.

A long time ago something my flight instructor taught me was not to overestimate my skills because if carelessness doesn't kill you foolishness will. I've never forgotten that advice. Thanks Juan

12:00 The pilot gets the Blanco Lirio Glare Of Disgust!

My dear neighbors/friends of 20+ years were on this plane. Just makes you sick to think this accident was 100% avoidable!!

10 years flying in the Navy and not being a youngster when I got into the right seat in the airlines gave me the maturity to notify the "old man" in the left seat if something unsafe was going on, no matter what he said about it. That's the 2nd in command pilot's greatest responsibility.

I'm not a pilot but have always wondered why planes crash, and this site has taught me so, so much.

Arrogance, pride, ignoring checklists/procedures will (sooner or later,) kill you. Especially in aviation. It’s just a matter of time. Thanks Juan for another great accident breakdown analysis.

My Dad had over 30,000 hours when he retired and still used the checklist for every flight. I'm working on my PPL right now and will be doing the same. Safety First is my motto.

You can hear the anger in your voice because of such a senseless loss of life. All the pilot had to do was follow the rules and instructions and this very possibly could have been avoided. So sad.

Sounds like the pilot was spinning those cosmic tumblers every time he flew. On this takeoff they finally aligned and took nine innocent lives.

Good grief...it's even worse than Dan suspected. This is infuriating.

When I was flying the Beech 1900, which is basically the largest member of the King Air family, the procedure was for the pilot monitoring to guard the throttles until 400 AGL. The flying pilot would remove his/her hands from the throttles at V1, but the pilot monitoring's guarding of the throttles was the safety against the possibility of the throttles accidentally sliding back. Also, at least for the 1900, the auto feather system is a required item. If it did not arm by 80 knots, which was indicated by two green lights labeled 'AFX' next to the torque gauges, then it was an abort. At low altitudes and high power settings, pilots could not react fast enough to an engine failure to manually feather the prop before losing control. We actually demonstrated this in the sim many times, and it was pretty scary to see how fast you could lose control. This is a very sad and senseless loss of life. A professionally run flight deck could have saved the lives of all on board.

Juan, this reminds me of what could’ve happened several years ago when I was in copilot seat of a twin Cessna 414 departing Meigs Field in Chicago. I was just a private pilot at the time and only a passenger this day. The owner of the aircraft added an extra passenger at the last minute. The pilot did not reconfigure weight and balance. The plane taxied so slow that the pilot got out to make sure tires were inflated and after he did he proceeded. I’ll never forget the roll out on the runway as I watched the airspeed and the fence at the end of the runway. That airspeed was slow to climb and the fence got closer and closer and the pilot lifted off at the last second. As we climbed out over Lake Michigan I could hear the stall horn faintly screaming as we climbed and made our turn to the south. We were probably overweight and/or near aft limits at least for a short field takeoff. To this day I wonder why I’m still alive. That was a close call. The pilot should’ve taken the time to recalculate weight and balance that day. Not worth taking chances.

Absolutely the worst case of pilot incompetence I’ve heard of.

It’s always tragic to discuss these topics, but I enjoy the way you spell things out in detail and enjoy your channel. Thank you for taking the time to make them.

Thanks for not beating around the bush about the cause of this accident. You're not afraid to potentially offend some people with your critique (I know a few pilots who would fit the character you're describing), and that's good.

My thanks to you for producing videos you know will be demonetized. I worked on aviation ground equipment (radar, comms, and ATC displays) for 45 years and still care very much. Safety is a way of life.

My God, how many holes did this pilot line up in the Swiss cheeses slices? Incredible number of errors on this one. Awesome cockpit breakdown in the mighty Luscombe as well!!!

I was only ever a glider pilot but twice when I rode in powered aircraft the pilot asked me to keep a look out and speak out if I wasn't happy with anything. I was pleased to see him do "what if" checks before we went anywhere. Pretty much the same planning that I was taught to do before being winch launched. It takes seconds. Saves lives.

Great video. I`m a flight instructor and it bugs me to no end when students take their hand off the throttle and put it on the yoke, dashboard or in their lap during takeoff/climb or approach/landing. The other day departing the circuit, one of my students let go of the throttle and rested his hand on the dash while we were climbing, so I took the liberty of pulling the power back myself (which he reacted to and added it back in). He was a little perplexed initially but I told him that not guarding the throttle during those phases of flight is a potential invitation for me to monkey with the power setting... Or if I`m not there, for the throttle to slide out by itself. We had another guy recently who was convinced for a few (probably terrifying) moments that he had an engine failure right after takeoff, but in reality the throttle was just sliding out because he took his hand off of it.

The fact that this man, flew a perfectly good airplane into a hangar, killing innocent people, is mind boggling!

After skipping checklists, panic flying without gathering his SA after things hit the fan, this pilot quite literally steered the plane into the ground. Man this one is tough to watch.

I can tell you in my experiences that a lot of old men have a major problem with taking advice or suggestions from someone much younger than them. The pilot not wanting his co pilot touching anything or having any input on the controls is an example of that.

Juan this is gut wrenching in so many ways, as an aircraft mechanic I've serviced this model aircraft so I'm familiar with the controls. It's is sad for the loss of life, my Instructors hammered into me procedures are what you follow because people who wrote them died doing so. Like this pilot has now written a new chapter for us to learn by and innocent people paid the price. Thank you Sir for your hard work bringing this to us, you have the best channel I believe, your very well equipped and knowledgeable on these subjects. SEMPER FI 👍👍👍👍👍🇺🇸❤

I had a pilot who was also an A&P for many years, and had several hundred hours in the 300, told me this on the day this crash happened. To him, based on what he had already seen on the news, he felt it almost had to be pilot error. He said he has lost thrust on an engine due to a mechanical issue, and while it can be disastrous if not handled properly, it is not that complicated if procedures are followed. No checklist, no CRM is begging for a bad outcome. Such a shame.

What a wild crash. I had a desk against the window of the 10th floor of a building overlooking addison airport. Obviously didn’t see the crash itself, but the fireball and smoke were very very eerie. Was tough to keep working - took a walk over near the hangar and it was understandably a media frenzy.

It really bothers me how many of these accidents (this and the 9 oh 9 come to mind) where these... "Seasoned" pilots REFUSING to let a certified pilot assist in emergencies... Leading to tragedy. Great reminders of the kind of pilot i NEVER want to be.

There are thousands of King Airs flying and thousands of King Air pilots. They should know that the friction knobs are critical enough that, in our operation at least, they are the first item on the before takeoff checklist. The main reason for power lever migration isn't because of typical vibration but instead because of a purposeful design. There is a heavy duty spring under the cowling that is designed to push the power levers toward idle. This is a safety feature so that in the rare event a power cable breaks the engine won't overspeed and damage itself by going to full gas generator (N1) RPM. Instead, it will harmlessly wind up to idle RPM. In the King Air, it is essential that the friction knobs are tightened before takeoff and during the takeoff all the up to a safe altitude, the pilot flying should keep his/her hand on the power levers. If momentarily removing the hand to raise the gear, then immediately place the hand back on the power levers. Power lever migration may seem obvious when an engine loses thrust but not always so. Ther are cases in the past where an engine was suspected of having failed without noticing that it was simply that the power lever migrated back toward idle. So, after sensing a thrust loss with the attendant yaw, fly the airplane first, and then grab a handful of power levers and push them up. If that solves the problem then the thrust loss was recoverable. If the engine does not regain its torque, then it truly may have failed and is not recoverable. If the autofeather system is armed and there is a loss of torque, the propeller should start the feathering sequence. However, if the loss is due to power lever migration, autofeathering will nor occur because the system will be disarmed. Both power levers must be pushed up to activate arming switches under the power quadrant cover that are the equivalent of where 90% N1 will occur.

Juan really knows his subject, and spends a lot of time researching and producing videos to help other pilots. As a pilot myself I have been in situations where the captain makes questionable decisions, as the copilot you have to know when to speak up, and when it's not going to matter much, so save your ammo. I would have called him out on the weight and balance, and not following the checklists, made him do a takeoff brief, and I certainly wouldn't have flown with him more than once.

The huge sigh told me everything I needed to know.

Even us non-pilots have learned from Juan and other serious Aviation channels: CRM and checklists must NEVER be deviated from.

When I started flying my instructor told me to read Stick and Rudder. I did very carefully and fully understood how a plane flys. I never hear about that book today.

There is an incredible up close video of this accident on WFAA (RU-vid). They requested an “open records” request which released the videos they (NTSB) have. Great educational videos! Thank You for your time, patience & thorough explanations of what occurs during these unfortunate accidents!

Good info Juan. I think we all initially thought this was an engine failure and in a way, it was with the same results. Such a tragic loss of life.

Juan, I'm with you on about 90% of your dissection of this event. I am a King Air 350 captain at a 135 operator. We train hands off the throttle at V1, just the same as any other multi engine turbine crew does to prevent inadvertent throttle changes after V1 and to reinforce commitment to treat any post v1 failure as an in-flight failure. Throttle migration is however a well known King Air foible. This accident is full of crew issues, but I'd argue that a hand on the throttle was not necessarily one of them.

I haven't seen the Swiss Cheese diagram since the Navy. It's a great way of explaining, not just safety, but high standards in general. Look the other way long enough, and the holes will always line up. 👌

A friend of mine quit flying commercially at 70 yrs of age. He said that there was a huge increase when he turned 70 and that it was prohibitive for his company to continue to insure him. He amassed over 35,000 hrs, most of it in Navajos and Mooneys.

Age may not have been a factor but attitude certainly was. Thanks for the review.

In the AF we had a saying: Airplanes don't crash by compartment. If someone sees something wrong speak up and take action.

My instructor always told me to use my checklist, even if it's easy ones like climb checklist on a 172, if i don't do it he called me out. I'm really thankful for having someone that taught me right.

This was a very informative program. As a private pilot, the use of a checklist was drummed into my head. As they say, there are OLD pilots, and there are BOLD pilots. But there are very few OLD, BOLD pilots. One thing about flying. You rarely get a chance to repeat your mistakes.

Juan, i have been watching your Chanel for over a year now. i'm 52 PPL working on my AGI for ground so i can teach ground only. i have learned so much from your chanel and with the grace of god i can try and prevent some of the stuff covered on your Chanel happening to me. god bless you . so happy your back in the right seat after going through your medical. your truly an inspiration to me..thank you

I do that same index finger thing with the throttle, but I never even really thought about it until you mentioned it.

I grew up flying with my father he taught me everything to do taking off and landing in case there was a problem what a shame this man thought he needed to do it all himself

Centuries before human flight, wise men recognized that pride goeth before a fall. Some things never change.

The decision to over load the aircraft by 600lbs is a red flag. It shows a lack of discipline that he could not explain to the aircraft owner that it was not safe to do so. Leave 3 people behind or make an enroute fuel stop on the way to Tampa.

Hey Juan,,,, I just turned 71 (5-19) and yep I can't do the things I use to be able to do. However hopefully I haven't created any bad habits in my flying. These videos keep my "tuned" up on flying. One of these days (next year) I'll fly out to Grass Valley and see you. Thanks for another great video!

'We're here to learn, not to criticise.' This is what keeps me coming back to this fine channel. It's astounding that YT demonitise your content, given it's inherent value to the aviation industry. Your accurate and compassionate analysis of these incidents will, if it hasn't already, prevent an accident. It's so important that we discuss these events in a mature and non-judgemental way, and you do that so well. Thanks Juan, keep banging the drum dude.

I think we all agree that your excellent channel does a great service to GA by identifying common accident causes AND as importantly, by stressing to all pilots such crucial information as using checklists, proper CRM, GWT an CG calculations, risks of IMC and icing, etc., etc., etc. The fact that RU-vid punishes you through demonetization is ridiculous and perversely hinders our ability to further learn from our collective mistakes. Shame on YOU, RU-vid Keep it up Juan. You are doing invaluable work.

Why wasn't this pilot reported? Obviously someone knew he wasn't doing the right thing. I would have said something to someone!

Juan Browne and Dan Gryder: Discussing accident reports on YT, to prevent others from making the same mistakes in the future. RU-vid: We can't have that, demonetized!

This happened just before I retired and moved away. I lived less than a mile from Addison Airport and flew in and out on my friend's Bonanza. Thanks for closing the book for me. Nice airport; large enough for 737s. I would say 'complacency' killed those folks.

I work for the airlines and fly complicated jets. I haven’t done it as long as you have Juan, but the fact remains that I can hop in my simple 172, go without using a checklist and probably be just fine. However, I use it every damn time because I know two things: when things hit the fan you revert to your training and most importantly: I’m not perfect. Checklists don’t forget things. This is an absolutely tragic accident. CRM saves lives.

A tough subject that needs to be addressed as well is encouraging pilots like the right seater in this situation to NOT stand for behavior like this. It’s hard because a lot of people at a young stage in their career can get into situations where the flight time is number one priority. Remember it’s not worth your life to put up with an unsafe pilot. It will be hard to speak up and possibly walk out, but there will be more opportunities.

When the FAA first proposed mandatory retirement at 65 for scheduled airline pilots, the union, of course, objected on grounds of age discrimination. The statute, of course, allows for age discrimination if age is a "bona fide occupational qualification." The FAA came back with stacks, and I mean stacks, of studies documenting the effects age has on pilot performance. Fewer the 10% of pilots over 65 showed no significant deterioration in performance measures, such as short term memory tests, recall of memory items during simulated emergencies, or even proper control inputs for situations such as unusual attitudes. Every pilot I know over the age of 65 says he (and they are all men) is in the 10%. The truth is these FAA regs are there for a very good reason.

Thanks for how you conducted this video. I was friends with 3 of the people on this aircraft. The information is important but the sensitivity is appreciated.

I can't tell you how many Human Performance errors we reviewed in my brief Nuke career that involved the dreaded Pilot-Copilot combination. Where the older, senior grade, more experienced operator was an asshole. Tenerife being the most egregious example in the flying business, Dyatlov at Chernobyl being the worst nuclear example. Happens more than it should. One method we found that worked was to train the junior partner to try to get the senior into "Teaching Mode". If the junior operator can get the senior into helping him understand without challenging his seniority, without sounding like an idiot, many of the crusty and emotionally conservative seniors would turn into an instructor. But there were always those guys who wouldn't.

Great job Juan. So very sad. Lost a friend back in 77 in almost the same way. You can never train enough. 🛫🛬📖

Thanks as always for the great coverage Juan. It sounds like this guy was an accident waiting to happen for a long time; too bad it had to happen with a bunch of other people on-board.

I saw the aftermath a day or two after it had happened, know the guy who owns the hangar next to that one. Harrowing scene, nice to finally know what went down.

Those poor passengers. The level of trust given to pilots by the public cannot be overstated and should never be abused

I hear 3 new items not evident on neither the prelim. or interim; earlier reports covered the incorrect rudder action and preflight negligence. 1. They DO think friction lock caused power loss. Right? 2. They infer that neither pilot had his hands on a throttle lever - during takeoff! 3 *Premature rotation.* OMG. At max weight - plus a bit - rotates PRIOR TO VR?? And steeply too! With *no hands on throttle.* With no perception of less than normal sounding power. Forbids SIC from acting. Did not prepare or brief. Then wrong rudder. That's a stunning collection.

Thanks for a super video as always, Juan! This kind of accidents always reminds me of the terrible 747 Canary Islands crash caused by a "shut up and do as I say"-captain...

"initiate nothing and back me up on everything" yup that was part of the briefing I received 40 years ago as a first officer. Sad to hear the concept is still alive and well.Check your ego on the ground folks.

I’m 71 and can remember my primary training in my 20s. We didn’t use checklists in our C-150s. My question later on in the more complex aircraft was why didn’t we? Never the less I use checklists no matter how simple the aircraft. It is a good habit to have. I have my multi as well. This is incredibly tragic and avoidable event.

Only one minute in but I now understand a bit more on why my flight instructor is so adamant about me guarding the throttle

Dead Foot Dead Engine! Get the nose down, raise gear, and verify dead foot dead engine, put necessary rudder INTO working engine, secure dead engine and fly the plane.

Another great episode, thanks for the no punches explanation. This is an example of true critical thinking to learn from an event and focus on the measures needed to prevent tragedy in the future. Those of us willing to listen thank you for taking the time to produce and present this video.

Again Juan, thanks for the time and effort to compile and present us this information in a simple and useful manner. This allow us to understand what really happened in this tragic event. And also help prevent the repetition of these accidents.

Thanks for this...one of the things I like about your reports is you call a spade a spade and not a shovel. Had the unfortunate experience to fly with some folks like the pilot in my military career. Problem is they usually end up killing more than themselves when their incompetence finally catches up with them. As usual the video and the conclusion is excellent.

In the end it boiled down to the pilot being a stubborn old man. And no prior checkride showed this.

Yet another awesome video! I always feel like I learn something when watching your vids. Thanks for all the detail and the in depth explanations! Keep up the great work. Fascinating stuff.

This report makes your past couple of videos on single wing stalls all the more appropriate. It looks like a textbook case of what not to do when loss of power on a multi-engine aircraft occurs. It also became very clear in this instance where the term "augering in" comes from. If you only have 1 wing flying there is no other way to go in but a nose first spin. Tragic for the passengers to have died because a pilot was too comfortable in his position and too tight fisted with sharing knowledge with the less experienced crew assigned to work with him.

One of your best, very clear and concise. Keep up the great work!

Thanks Juan . You and Dan will save a lot a lot of pilots and people . Thanks for the great informative videos .

Happy 250K Juan!!! You deserve it, and more!!!

Its amazing he made it to 71.

This is a very sad report to hear. It sounds to me like there really isn't much to learn here. The lessons this crash teach us have all been taught before.

Classic normalization of deviance. Thanks for your clear and concise analysis Juan.

Once again, thanks for all you do with this channel and as a pilot as well!!! 🤘🏻😊

So thankful there are people out there like you Juan investigating these accidents and going over the data. Have a great Wednesday afternoon.

LOL! I use my index finger the very same way, on the throttle. My first instructor chewed me out one day for doing so. I was doing it from day one. Not sure why...it was just the way I did it. I still do so today.

One arrogant poor pilot. A bunch of dead people. Painful to watch.

Hands down the best Aviation breakdown videos on the internet !!!! Sir exceptional work once again.

With the autofeather armed, the system will work regardless of the power lever angle. The system is activated by a calibrated differential in torque oil pressure. The King Air also has a rudder boost system to help counteract yaw of the failed engine. An autofeather and rudder boost test is normally done on the first flight of the day. Having an engine failure on takeoff in a King Air should be less dramatic than in other aircraft that don’t have these automated systems.

Thanks Juan. Teamwork makes the dream work. Hopefully there are lessons leaned and lives saved in future flights by this review.

The most critical piece of equipment for a safe flight can be found between the pilot's ears.

Thanks for your accident reviews. These are very nicely done.

Very VERY similar incident as happened at Sydney Airport in 1980 with a Super King Air 200 that killed 13 people. Pilot had engine failure just after takeoff and attempted to land but crashed into the sea wall at the end of the Botany Bay runway. In fact the similarities are scary similar in both crashes. Maybe Juan it's worth looking back on the fatal Sydney King Air crash. I remember it well as a 12 year old.The cause of the engine failure has not been determined, but the most likely explanation is that the aircraft was operated in a reduced power configuration which, under the prevailing conditions, rendered its single-engine performance critical in respect to aircraft handling. From memory the pilot turned on the failed engine side.

I remember seeing a video of some Soviets at take-off in a TU154 where all three in the cockpit quite deliberately put their hands on the throttles..I thought it was overdoing it, I'm sure they had good reason.

Thanks for the solid analysis, and explanation.

Another excellent video. Thank you very much for all the effort you put into making your content. Love your husky by the way!

As always...great analysis Juan...I learn something from you every video...im 56 years old and just got my ppl last August...but appreciate everything you do so thanks!!!

It's not right that they run ads on your videos that they demonitize. That should be a breach of contract.

Not a pilot but learning a lot from you thank you for the content and information

Great analysis Brownie. It's tragic that we still have SICs out there that will ride to their death rather than taking action. Throttle creep will not happen if the PIC keeps hands on the throttles - that's shocking! Hind sight is 20-20, but the SIC pushing up the throttles and putting in a boot full of right rudder could have changed the outcome.

Great video, Juan. Thanks