MONTEBELLO, Va. (WRIC) — Just over two weeks after a Cessna Citation 560 jet crashed into the Shenandoah Valley, instantly killing four people on board, the National Transportation Safety Board has released a preliminary report that paints a clearer picture of the plane’s movements that afternoon.
The Timeline
10:59 a.m.
According to the report, the plane’s pilot left Melbourne International Airport in Melbourne, Fla. just before 11 a.m. on Sunday, June 4.
12:31 p.m.
The pilot landed at Elizabethton Municipal Airport in Elizabethton, Tenn. at 12:31 p.m., then put fuel in the plane and picked up three passengers — including 49-year-old Adina Azarian, the daughter of the plane’s owner, and her 2-year-old daughter Aria.
1:13 p.m.
The plane left the airport at 1:13 p.m. and headed to Long Island Mac Arthur Airport in New York.
Based on air traffic control audio, the pilot contacted air traffic control in Atlanta shortly after take-off, and then again at 1:22 p.m. and 1:25 p.m., when air traffic control cleared the plane to fly at a height of 28,000 feet.
1:30 p.m.
Just before 1:30 p.m., the pilot did not respond when air traffic control contacted the plane again — this time asking the pilot to not fly higher than 33,000 feet. There were no more radio transmissions from the pilot as the plane climbed to 34,000 feet and leveled off.
Data from surveillance technology found that the plane’s flight was consistent with its planned flight path for the next two hours until it flew over Long Island Mac Arthur Airport and then turned around and began flying south again.
3:20 p.m.
At 3:20 p.m., the plane had not been in contact with air traffic control for around two hours. At that point, it was intercepted by fighter aircraft — still with no response from the pilot.
3:22 p.m.
At 3:22 p.m., the plane began rapidly descending toward the ground and ultimately crashed into a rural area just north of Montebello, Virginia, just one minute later.
The pilot and all three passengers died on impact.
The cockpit was destroyed in the crash, and fragments of the wings, engines, tail and body of the plane were scattered throughout the crash site. This wreckage was taken from the crash site and is being examined further.
Further findings
The preliminary report has confirmed that the plane had a cockpit voice recorder onboard, but this record has not yet been found. There was no flight data recorder onboard.
The report also found the pilot had thousands of registered flight hours and had the necessary ratings and medical certificates needed to fly the Cessna plane.
While the exact cause of the crash is still unknown, one leading theory is that hypoxia — a condition that occurs when the brain is deprived of adequate oxygen — could have impacted the pilot, causing him to become unconscious.
You can read the entire preliminary report below:
