According to the National Transportation Safety Board, a new preliminary report of aviation accidents indicates that the pilot who died in a plane crash in October in North Carolina flew his “experimental” aircraft to Despite the fact that days before, the canopy separated from the frame of his plane, running out of awnings.
In addition, Charles Grant Fitzgerald Jr. would have used a helicopter helmet and a face mask to tolerate the wind according to the report.
Charles Grant Fitzgerald Jr., died when his plane crashed on October 14 before noon, in a wooded area near Cameron.
The 66-year-old man was the only person on the two-seater plane and his aircraft was found around midnight on October 15.
According to the accident report, Fitzgerald flew in a Vans RV-4, “experimental” and “built by amateurs” from Woodward Field airport in Camden, South Carolina, to a meeting of the Experimental Aircraft Association two days before the accident.
Allegedly, during his flight back to South Carolina, the canopy of his plane separated from the frame, but the pilot managed to land at Woodward Field Airport in Camden.
The report indicates that Fitzgerald would have called a friend, who is also an instructor of flight, to tell you its purpose of flying without awnings on Monday using a motorcycle helmet and a mask to face the wind.
Officials said the friend allegedly advised Fitzgerald not to fly the plane while he was in that condition.
Another pilot told officials that he and Fitzgerald met at Woodward Field airport at 9:30 am that Monday. The two refilled their planes with fuel and left for Rooster Field airport in Cameron, North Carolina.
The report notes that when the planes were about 20 miles from the North Carolina airport, the two pilots took different routes. The latest data recorded the Fitzgerald plane a quarter mile from the runway and about 480 feet from the crash site.
According to FAA aviator records, Fitzgerald had a private pilot certificate and had registered flights from August 29, 2010 to September 6, 2019, recording a total flight time of 581.5 hours in the air.
Source: Univision
