Why Did the Plane Crash in the Field?
So why did the airplane crash in the field? The simple explanation is "gravity." But, of course, there is much more to it. The stark headline from WTOP said, "BOWIE, Md. - Two men are dead and a woman is critically injured after their small plane crashed nose first into a field at Freeway Airport Wednesday during heavy snow." Again, that doesn't tell the whole story.
Why do I care? I didn't know any of the people involved in the crash. I didn't see it. It didn't occur at my airport. I didn't have a dream foretelling it. But I am a pilot, and as a pilot I have been confronted with many decisions, any one of which can begin a failure chain which could result in a similar fatal accident killing everyone in the aircraft. That, and someone I knew attempted to make that airport in similar bad weather, also chose not to go to a larger alternate airport, and also died.
So what happened here? In simple terms, a pilot chose to leave an airport in Warrenton, VA in a snow storm with very low clouds, enroute to Freeway Airport, located near Bowie, Maryland. He had two people on board a Cessna 172, and flew northeast, into weather that was not forecast to be very good. The pilot chose Freeway because he had a passenger to pick up there, despite the fact that Freeway airport's runway is 2400 feet long by 40 feet wide, which is not wide enough to include the wings on most aircraft. It is obstructed on one side by power lines. On a good day, it is a challenging airport. On a day with very low visibility in instrument conditions, it is not an airport I would even consider.
Today's pilot decided to fly what is called a "non precision" approach to this airport. A non precision approach is one where you must use instruments to bring you into the vicinity of the airport, where you then descend to the minimum descent altitude, and look out the window to see if you can see the airport. If you do not, you are required to "miss the approach" which means you must climb as quickly as you can and then either go to another airport, or try the approach again.
When the pilot radioed his intention to shoot the approach and land at Freeway, the Chief Flight Instructor at the airport told the news crew that he radioed back that it would not be advisable to attempt to land, and that the pilot should divert to Baltimore Washington International (which had a precision approach which guides the airplane to the runway by use of both direction and altitude guides).
The news reported that the aircraft "missed" the first approach, then came around for a second one. During the second approach, the pilot, likely because he could not see the runway, powered up to either go around again, or go to another airport. Approximately 300 feet from the end of the runway, the wreckage was found nose down, tail pointed at approximately a 45 degree angle.
I see Doug, asking me if he can help me pull my airplane out. Smiling, so excited he was flying traffic reporters. He wanted my approval for his great new job. He almost skipped away, walking on air. It was later that the plane he was flying with a reporter on board crashed while trying to reach Freeway Airport as fog was closing in. I saw the coverage of the accident, the flowers at our home airport where he flew out of, and the sad people wondering why.
I examined that accident, went over and over what perhaps Doug was thinking, why he would choose that place to put down when in danger instead of going to BWI. "Why didn't he just divert? Why did he try this tiny airport? Why did he die and the reporter live? Why?"
If this pilot today had read the reports of Doug's accident in 1998, perhaps he would have diverted to Baltimore rather than trying to land at Freeway. Perhaps he and his front seat passenger would be alive today, although inconveniencing his friend who was waiting to be picked up. Perhaps the woman from the back of the aircraft would not be in ICU right now. Perhaps a lot of things are possible. Unfortunately we'll never know what might have been. I can only hope that the next pilot may read THIS accident report before duplicating this accident.