A PA-31T Cheyenne II just crashed while T/O at LPCS. According to media, the Swiss registered HB-LTI crashed 2 km of LPCS, Killing the pilot and 3 passengers as well a person on the ground.
So far, the accident is under investigation.
Sad day.
I saw that plane yesterday before we left Cascais.
R I P
Awful
From news reports:
What could cause that? That’s really unusual in light GA.
One usually reliable source does state things went wrong shortly after take-off, which seems to contradict the mid-air bit, and without any mention of an explosion. Whom does the “is said” refer to? It sounds so tabloid-like.
[[edit]] “while T/O” was even in the opening post.
Just like Peter I am wondering about the reports of the aircraft “exploding mid-air”. Even an engine fire would lead to an instant explosion, would it. Real life isn’t Holywood!
To get an explosion (without some explosive, of course) you would need a fuel leak into some cavity, and a source of ignition. I don’t think you can get an explosion inside the cavity of a fuel tank because the fuel to air ratio inside will be too high. Also there should not be a source of ignition inside the fuel tank, anyway.
This was a certified aircraft so should have proper (fireproof) hoses for the fuel.
The engine could let go, with a similar effect.
Eyewitness reports are terribly unreliable. For instance, if it had shed a prop blade, it would probably have made a loud noise and one of the engines would have been torn off, and I’m sure some eyewitnesses would have described it as “the aircraft exploding”.
To you pilots, can I humbly ask, how that kind of tragic accidents, make you, eventually, (re)consider your taste for flying ?