Daytona Beach, FL - The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its preliminary accident report for the April 4 Daytona Beach plane crash that killed an Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) student and a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) pilot examiner.
The NTSB confirmed the ERAU-owned plane crashed to the ground at 9:53 AM on April 4. They reported that witnesses saw the plane flying normally and then observed the left wing separate from the fuselage. The investigation revealed that parts of the left wing were fractured due to overstress and metal fatigue. The report indicates that the right wing also had fatigue cracks in the same location.
(Photos courtesy NTSB)
According to the report, the debris path was 450 feet long and the left wing was found 200 feet away from the main wreckage. The right wing remained attached to the fuselage. The landing gear on the right and left sides were in the down and locked position. The report indicates that there was no flight plan filed for the flight and that meteorological conditions were not a factor in the crash. The plane was manufactured on September 17, 2007, and amounted 7,690.6 hours of operation prior to the accident. Its most recent annual inspection was completed on March 21, 2018. The plane had flown 28.3 hours between the time of that inspection and the time of the accident. The pilot, 25-year-old Navy veteran Zachary Capra, held a private pilot certificate and had reported 201 hours of flight experience as of March 19, 2018. Capra was conducting his commercial pilot single-engine land practical test. The FAA pilot examiner, 61-year-old John Azma, held an airline transport pilot certificate and a flight instructor Certificate. As of April 5, 2017, Azma had reported 27,600 hours of flight experience. Earlier reporting on this story can be found here, here, and here. The full preliminary report can be found here. Photo courtesy WFTV Channel 9. Copyright Southern Stone Communications 2018.
