Fatal Hampton plane crash was not due to mechanical failure, NTSB says in initial report
A plane that crashed in Hampton last month had no mechanical issues before it went down, killing Blue Origin astronaut Glen de Vries and his Essex County flight instructor Thomas Fischer, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday in an initial report.
The Cessna 172 single-engine aircraft had reached a moderate-to-high altitude of "about 6,400 feet above sea level before entering a steep descending left turn" that continued until the plane's flight track data was lost, according to the preliminary findings.
But investigators did not point to any immediate reasons as to why the plane descended from the sky on Nov. 11, a clear and slightly breezy day — winds were around 6 knots, or about 7 mph, the report notes — and into the Bear Swamp Wildlife Management Area off Fenner Road. The two-page report, prefaced with a warning that the findings were subject to change or may contain errors, states more of what wasn't the cause of the crash than what could have caused it.
"Initial examination of the engine did not reveal any pre-impact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation," investigators said.
The report says de Vries, who was receiving instruction from Fischer, departed the Essex County Airport around 10:30 a.m. and headed in a predominantly northwesterly direction en route to Sussex Airport, as said by state police at the time. The report says the aircraft was headed to Branchville, although there are no airports in the borough.
The plane disappeared from radar around 10:47 a.m., according to Flightaware.com, a digital aviation company.
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All major components of the plane were found at the crash site, investigators said. The plane, from the instrument panel and cockpit to the tail, was crushed by the impact, with the wings remaining partially attached. Electrical flow from the flight control cables was observed, investigators added.
The plane's propellers appeared to be functioning at the time of the crash, with "fresh cuts" on tree branches consistent with propeller strikes, according to investigators. The plane was found roughly 1,800 feet into the woods, fire chiefs from Hampton and Stillwater said in a statement last month.
There were no fires or explosions reported on the aircraft, investigators said.
No witnesses to the crash were noted in the report. Nearby residents told the New Jersey Herald at the time that they did not hear the plane go down and became aware of the crash only when helicopters were circling the area in search of the downed plane, which was spotted around 4 p.m.
Fischer, 54, of the Jefferson portion of Lake Hopatcong, was a second-generation flight instructor who owned Fischer Aviation, based at Essex County Airport in Caldwell. Fischer opened his flight school in March 2012 with his wife, Jodi, and had logged thousands of hours in the sky and obtained several advanced certifications.
A Carnegie Mellon University trustee and founder of Medidata Solutions, a medical software firm, de Vries, 49, of New York City, traveled into space on Oct. 13 aboard a Blue Origin spacecraft, fulfilling an apparent lifelong dream. He began his private pilot training with Fischer in February 2016, according to the Fischer Aviation website. He often posted on his social media about his flights and purchased his own single-engine Diamond aircraft in 2020.
Thursday's report says the aircraft has been retained for further examination. The NTSB indicates that certain evidence requires more detailed examination, including mechanical components that may be sent to the manufacturer for analysis. A final report will be released once the investigation is complete.
Lori Comstock can be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.
This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Hampton NJ plane crash: NTSB findings in Glen de Vries death
