Deadly Thanksgiving eve plane crash in Mercer County caused by engine problems, NTSB report says

PINE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — The plane crash that happened near a landfill outside of Grove City the day before Thanksgiving — killing both the pilot and passenger — was caused by engine problems, according to a report from the National Transportation Safety Board.

According to Federal Aviation Administration officials, the Cessna T210R crashed around 5:45 p.m. on Nov. 24 and caught fire after going down.

Richard Briggs, 65, of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, made a turnaround and a stop at the Clarion County Airport two hours into the flight and shortly before the crash. His passenger, 55-year-old Keith Vanover of Parma, Ohio, died days later at a Pittsburgh hospital, Channel 11′s news exchange partners at TribLIVE learned.

According to the report, Briggs requested six quarts of oil at the airport and stated that he thought an oil pressure issue was due to the oil dipstick not being properly secured, which resulted in a loss of oil through the dipstick tube.

The report stated that a witness recalled the plane was “covered in oil.”

Briggs and Vanover cleaned the plane with rags, replaced the oil and chose to keep flying, the report said.

The report also said during the subsequent engine start up, one of the witnesses, who was also a helicopter mechanic, heard the airplane engine making “abnormal cracking and popping” noises. Furthermore, the pilot taxied to the end of the runway and promptly departed without performing an engine run-up.

According to the report, Briggs reported to Youngstown air traffic control that 15 minutes after leaving their pit stop, the engine began losing power.

The controller told Briggs to land at Grove City Airport, which was eight miles away from the plane’s location.

According to the report, shortly after the pilot reported that the airport was in sight, and that he did not think the airplane would be able to reach the airport, all communication and radar contact was lost.

The place the plane crashed was approximately 2.9 miles away from Grove City Airport.

The plane crashed into trees and caught on fire. While some parts of the plane were destroyed by the fire, some parts remained intact.

The report stated that oil could still be seen on some parts of the plane. Additionally, the flight control cables had breaks in them that indicated overload, as well as in the aileron control cables.

According to the report, the engine separated from the main wreckage in the crash.

The engine showed evidence of heat and impact damage but was relatively intact, the report said.

The report also said two holes were observed in the top of the engine crankcase. One hole was located on the front segment of the No. 5 cylinder and was about 2 inches in diameter. The second hole was located adjacent to the No. 4 cylinder and was about 3 inches in diameter. The No. 4 cylinder connecting rod was separated from the crankshaft. The No. 5 cylinder piston was fragmented. The engine could not be rotated.

RAW: Crews pull PAT bus hundreds of feet into the air out of Pittsburgh bridge wreckage

©2022 Cox Media Group