[jimmuse]

The following was fowarded to me today:

MIA03FA046

accident occurred Sunday, January 26, 2003 at Fernandina Bch, FL
Aircraft:Cessna 337-O2A, registration: N52513
Injuries: 4 Fatal.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

On January 26, 2003, about 1520 eastern standard time, a Cessna 337-O2A, N52513, operated by Environmental Aviation Services Inc., as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 other work use flight impacted with the waters of the Atlantic Ocean about 7 miles east of Fernandina Beach, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. A company flight plan was filed. The airplane was destroyed. The commercial rated-pilot and three passengers received fatal injuries. The flight had originated from the Fernandina Beach Municipal Airport, at 1430.

The flight had departed the airport en route to perform a whale survey with a pilot and three employees of the survey company on board. The pilot radioed the survey company at 1447 and 1515, that they had spotted some whales. According to the owner of the airplane, the flight customarily would circle at 1000 feet until a whale was spotted, and then would descend to 750 to 500 feet for closer observations. While tracking a whale the pilot would bank the airplane to 45 degrees, and right turns only. While circling the whale the procedure that was followed was to use approach flaps of 10 to 20 degrees and fly at a speed of 100 knots. After tracking the whale the pilot would climb the airplane to 1,000 feet and continue the pre-planned search area. The last radar hit on the flight was at 1520, and showed the airplane at an altitude of 600 feet, at a ground speed of 0 knots. The location was at latitude 030:36:52 N, and a longitude of 081:17:07 W. At 0045, January 27, 2003, the U.S. Coast Guard reported a female body had washed up on Fernandina Beach. The airplane wreckage was located on January 29, 2003, about 7 miles east of Fernandina Beach, in 65 feet of water. The airplane was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean on February 1, 2003.


Zero knots ground speed?