On June 3, a small plane crash near Sugar Valley Airport in Mocksville, North Carolina, resulted in the deaths of the pilot and one passenger, with a second passenger sustaining serious injuries. A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) revealed that the pilot, flying a Universal Stinson 108, had lifted a wheel after landing to avoid hitting a turtle on the runway. A communications operator, observing from the airport office, had alerted the pilot to the turtle’s presence. The pilot landed approximately 1,400 feet down a 2,424-foot runway and raised the right main wheel to avoid the obstacle.
After this maneuver, the operator reported hearing the pilot advance the throttle, but the plane soon left her view. A maintenance worker cutting grass at the runway’s end saw the pilot lift the right wheel and noted that the plane began to rock back and forth before seemingly attempting to take off again. Shortly afterward, the worker heard a crash and saw smoke.
The wreckage was discovered about 255 feet from the runway, lodged between trees and engulfed in flames. Despite the impact, the airplane remained largely intact, with some fabric debris found in a nearby stream. The aircraft ended up on its left side, with the left wing folded beneath the fuselage and the right wing bent toward the tail. While preliminary reports detail the circumstances of the crash, they do not determine probable causes; such conclusions will be made in final reports, which can take up to two years.
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