Back-to-Back Plane Crashes in Central Texas

Within two days, two separate plane crashes occurred in Central Texas: one killing two people after their civilian-owned vintage plane crashed moments after takeoff in Kingsland, and another killing six people when a small plane crashed in Kerrville. In two interviews, KXAN turned to Managing Partner Mike Slack, who discussed the features of both aircrafts and what factors may have contributed to the crashes.

Regarding the Kingsland crash, Slack explained the Experimental Rans aircraft is a Light Sport Aircraft, stating, “It doesn’t have the weight that some other aircraft have, so it’s susceptible to gusty wind conditions, and a lot of Light Sport Aircraft tend not to fly in gusty conditions.” Watch the full KXAN segment on Kingsland here.

Regarding the Kerrville plane crash, Slack analyzed the plane’s flight plan and compared it with the route the plane actually took. He says the two didn’t match up, which could indicate that something went wrong. “We have indications of the airplane being too low and too slow on the instrument approach,” added Slack. “We don’t know why, we don’t know whether the pilot was there because of a problem in the aircraft or because the pilot was having difficulty following the prescribed altitudes and navigating the airplane safely. It will require further investigation to delve into that.” Read more about Kerrville here.