Mary F. Silitch

Learjet 35, Truckee, Calif., Dec. 28, 2005–The NTSB has released its preliminary report of the RSB Investments Learjet accident, which killed the two-man crew. Cleared for the GPS-A approach, a circling approach, to Truckee-Tahoe Airport, the jet crashed short of Runway 28 after loss of control.
One witness said, “I saw the aircraft in and out of the clouds in a close base for 28. I then saw it emerge from a cloud in a base-to-final turn. It appeared to be approximately 300 to 400 feet above the ground. The left wing was down nearly 90 degrees. The aircraft appeared to be north of the runway centerline. It pitched nose down approximately 30 to 40 degrees and appeared to do a half cartwheel on the ground before exploding.”
Another witness said the aircraft appeared to be about 300 feet agl in close to a 90- degree left bank, in the mist, trying to line up on 28. He thought the aircraft had overshot the centerline. “The bank angle sharpened somewhat,” he continued, “the nose began to tuck and the aircraft slipped into the ground.”
Wind was 220 degrees at 13 knots, with gusts to 36 knots, and visibility three miles. The sky condition was 1,800 feet agl scattered, 2,400 feet broken and 4,200 feet overcast.

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