The Federal Aviation Administration outlined a strict new pilot-training regimen for Mitsubishi MU-2B planes Thursday as the government’s response to a series of fatal accidents involving the aircraft, including two near Centennial Airport.
The plane is “a complex aircraft requiring operational techniques not typically found in other light turboprop aircraft,” the FAA said in a special safety evaluation report. “Fully understanding the system complexity is much more critical during an emergency situation.
“An MU-2B pilot is seven times more likely to lose control and have a fatal accident during an emergency when compared to pilots flying similar types of airplanes in similar situations,” the agency added.
In announcing the new training program, FAA director of aircraft certification John Hickey said, “The history of the MU-2 and nature of the accidents highlighted to us that pilots were not trained at the level they needed to be for the airplane.”
In December 2004, a Mitsubishi MU-2B-60 operated by American Check Transport Inc. crashed shortly after takeoff from Centennial after the pilot reported the loss of power in one engine. He was attempting an emergency landing when the plane fell to the ground. The accident killed pilot Paul Krysiak, 28, of Aurora, who was at the controls. James Presba, 25, of Lone Tree, also a pilot, was flying with Krysiak and also died.
In its report, the FAA said twin- engine MU-2Bs are high-speed planes designed originally as corporate aircraft but more recently flown by freight haulers and private pilots.
This switch put the planes “into the hands of pilots and maintenance providers who, in general, have less experience in high-performance airplanes than when it was used primarily as corporate transportation,” the FAA said.
In August, another American Check MU-2B-60 crashed while making a night instrument landing at Centennial in the rain, killing pilot Sam Hunter, who lived near Salt Lake City. Another MU-2B pilot for the check hauler was killed in February 2000 when his plane hit a ridge while approaching an airport in Idaho.
In the wake of the accidents near Centennial, U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, a Littleton Republican, asked the FAA to ground MU-2 aircraft.
In a statement Thursday, Tancredo said, “Grounding the aircraft remains the optimum solution, but this is a good first step for the FAA who – like a recovering alcoholic – has taken the first step of admitting that there is a problem.”
Staff writer Jeffrey Leib can be reached at 303-820-1645 or jleib@denverpost.com.
