NTSB: Plane crew saw significant ice before crash

[jams]

This sounds like an avoidable situation.

Don't planes have some type of wing defroster? If so, shouldn't it have been on?

[Ronbo]

NTSB recovered the black boxes, the de-icers where on at the time of the crash...

It'll take a while for the investigation to complete.

Sometimes planes, like everything else, just break.

[Ron61]

I listened to the tape of the ATC and pilot and other planes and some of them said they had some ice on the wings too. Once it starts forming it is hard to keep off when they are flying in cold weather, and also maybe the defrosters weren't working properly, but that plane was just two years old I believe. I really felt for the widow who lost her husband in the 9/11 mess and was on the way to Buffalo to attend what would have been his birthday party. It is amazing that it never hit more houses in the area it came down as they seem to be pretty close together. One person that I saw them talk to said it just looked as if it dived all of a sudden.

Ron

[jams]

Some people like the widow seem to have nothing but bad luck!

I am happy to hear the defrosters were on. At least it was not a stupid mistake...so far.

[Tommy]

Icing is one of the scariest things I encountered during my flying career. It both increases the weight of the airplane and changes the shape of the wings, reducing their effectiveness at producing lift. If the ice buildup is not symmetrical on both wings, one wing will stall before the other causing the aircraft to roll toward the stalled wing. It's bad stuff.

[Joe Wicked]

Tommy,
That is exactly what 1 witness described. He said the nose was pointed slightly down and the plane was tilted to the left. He also said the engines sounded like they were heavily loaded, but lower than expected RPM.