ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, October 24, 1996 TAG: 9610240065
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-2 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Associated Press
A National Transportation Safety Board report concluded that pilot error led to a plane crash near Virginia's Russell-Tazewell county line in 1995 that killed three Tennessee men.
The report said pilot Reginald Swick of Chattanooga, Tenn., allowed the plane, a twin-engine Piper, to exceed its maximum stress limit while trying to fly around bad weather.
The plane crashed June 14, 1995, killing Swick and two passengers, businessman Leon McDaniel of Ooltewan, Tenn., and his stepson, Justin Lee of Chattanooga. They were headed from Chattanooga to Lancaster, Pa., when they encountered thunderstorms and a hailstorm.
Swick reported icing just before the crash, NTSB officials said.
In his last transmission before disappearing from radar, he told air traffic controllers he was ``trying to get out of this mess,'' the report said.
The NTSB said the plane broke apart in the air, leaving wreckage scattered over a three-mile area. The right wing failed and both engines separated in flight, the agency said.
LENGTH: Short : 34 lines KEYWORDS: FATALITYby CNB