Six Die in Crash at North Las Vegas Airport

December 26, 2003

Six Die in Crash at North Las Vegas Airport
Las Vegas Review-Journal, NV

A single-engine aircraft crashed during takeoff Thursday at the North Las Vegas 
Airport, killing the four adults and two children aboard. 

Witness Mike Miller, who was at a gas station on Rancho Drive and Carey Avenue 
when the Beech A-36 aircraft hit the ground at 1:21 p.m., said the plane was 
immediately engulfed in flames, sending a column of black smoke into the sky. 
No one could have helped the passengers, even if the wreckage were reachable, 
Miller said. 

"It's such a tremendous human loss," said Miller, who is a helicopter pilot. "I 
wish someone could have helped them." 

Allen Kenitzer, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said the 
pilot radioed in an emergency and indicated he was trying to return to the 
airport. 

At that point, the single-engine plane "lost lift ... and went nose-in," 
Kenitzer said. 

Four adults and two children were killed in the crash, said FAA safety 
inspector Ron Williams. The identities of the pilot and the passengers were not 
available Thursday. 

Clark County Aviation Department spokeswoman Hilarie Grey said the plane had 
been fully fueled before taking the runway. 

North Las Vegas police closed westbound Carey at Simmons Street as emergency 
responders converged on crash scene. The plane went down on the southern edge 
of the airport, hitting a concrete wash. 

Workers draped white sheets over the airport's chain link fencing as they 
removed the bodies from the crash scene about 3:30 p.m. The victims were taken 
to the Clark County coroner's office. 

Because the accident resulted in fatalities, Grey said the National 
Transportation Safety Board would investigate the cause of the crash. Grey said 
no information was available on why the plane went down or whether wind and 
rain were factors. Rainy and windy weather had shut down two of the airport's 
three runways. 

An inspector from the NTSB's Los Angeles office was not expected to arrive in 
North Las Vegas until today. Local law enforcement will keep the site secure 
until inspectors arrive, Grey said. 

FAA records show the aircraft was built in 1980 and was owned by Pat Car Air 
Inc. of Wilmington, Del. 

The North Las Vegas Airport ranks as the second-busiest in Nevada behind 
McCarran International Airport. It's the 54th busiest airport in the nation. 
It's primarily a hub for sightseeing flights to regional attractions, and 
corporate and private aircraft. 

Despite its high activity, with about 600 total takeoffs and landings per day, 
the North Las Vegas Airport doesn't have aircraft rescue or firefighting 
equipment and personnel on site. Emergency responders at the Christmas Day 
crash included the North Las Vegas police and fire departments, and the Clark 
County Fire Department. 

The most recent accident at the North Las Vegas Airport was Sept. 23, when two 
single-engine planes collided at the intersection of two runways. One aircraft 
was landing and another was preparing for takeoff. The two pilots sustained 
moderate injuries. 

Two people were injured Aug. 31 when a small airplane crashed short of an 
airport runway shortly after 10 p.m. 

On March 30, one person was hurt when a small airplane crashed across the 
street from the airport next to a Rancho Drive apartment complex. 


The Associated Press contributed to this report.


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