Report: Fatal plane crash linked to flawed practice landing

A flight instructor who died in a Peach County airplane accident apparently did not maintain proper airspeed as the plane neared a landing, resulting in the crash, according to a report.

The National Transportation Safety Board finding said the plane crashed on Jan. 16, 2015, after 78-year-old Brian Powers tried to simulate an engine failure. Powers was instructing pilot and Macon resident John Reynolds, who sustained injuries in the crash.

The probable cause of the accident? The plane began to stall and spin about 300 feet short of the runway after Powers slowed down the speed too much, said the report, released Tuesday.

“According to the pilot receiving instruction, at the time of the accident the flight instructor was demonstrating a simulated engine-out approach to landing when the airplane ‘got too slow’ and then stalled,” the report said. “He indicated that there were no pre-impact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe or engine.”

A witness told investigators that as the plane neared the runway at Cameron Field Airport in Fort Valley, he noticed the aircraft "moving a little up and down, like a boat on waves," as if it were "fighting the wind."

The purpose of the flight, which ended after about 20 minutes, was for Reynolds to receive instruction as part of insurance company requirements. Powers was a certified flight instructor with 7,350 hours of experience flying planes.

The report did not find any mechanical malfunctions on the Luscombe 8/E plane that was built in 1946. The airplane had passed an inspection about six months before the crash. The plane did not have a stall warning device, but one was not required, the report said.

This story was originally published October 5, 2016 at 12:10 PM with the headline "Report: Fatal plane crash linked to flawed practice landing."