Panicked plane passenger 'gripped throttle' and caused crash at seaside resort
A plane crashed into a parked aircraft when a first-time passenger suffered a panic attack and accidentally gripped the throttle.
The pilot of the Pitts S-2A G-TIII light aircraft had invited one of his employees out for a flight from Blackpool Airport on the morning of June 8 this year. The passenger, who had no experience of flying on any type of aircraft, was just 5' 2" in height and so used a booster seat.
Despite initially feeling "good" about his first ever flight, the passenger started to feel "cooped up" due to only being able to see the sky, and asked not to fly as the plane began to taxi away from the hangar.
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As the plane was returning to the hangar the passenger began to panic and tried to open the canopy to the plane. The pilot tried to calm him down but the passenger then inadvertently gripped the throttle which led the plane to crash into a parked aircraft.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch, which investigates civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents within the UK, interviewed both the pilot and passenger as part of their investigation into the crash.
The AAIB report states: "The passenger reported he had no experience of flying in any type of aircraft before but was very keen to try it. The passenger stated he was not under pressure to fly and that he trusted the pilot.
"He said he had never experienced a panic attack before. The passenger commented that G-TIII may not have been the most appropriate choice of aircraft for his first time in the air."
The AAIB report, published this month, revealed that the pilot was an experienced commander who had 418 hours' flying experience. Neither the pilot of passenger suffered any injuries but both planes were damaged.
In conclusion the AAIB said: "The event shows that even passengers who are keen to fly can experience a sudden and unexpected panic reaction with the potential to affect the safety of the aircraft. In this case, it appears that claustrophobia and a lack of forward vision triggered the reaction.
"A pre-flight briefing was conducted, and the pilot immediately cancelled the flight when he became aware the passenger was uncomfortable. This averted a more serious outcome, but he was not able to prevent the collision caused by the passenger inadvertently advancing the throttle.
"It is not possible to eliminate all risk from unexpected passenger behaviour. The risk can be minimised by thorough preparation focusing not only on the passenger’s physical readiness for the flight but also their emotional readiness."