Navy: T-34 Crash was Avoidable

The report on the T-34 crash that occurred in New Orleans in January 2010 says the incident, in which the instructor pilot was killed, could have been prevented.

According to the Navy Times, the aircraft descended below required minimums without visually acquiring the runway.  The aircraft then impacted the water.  Both crewmembers climbed out; they didn’t have water survival gear.  They became separated, and the instructor pilot’s body was found a few days later.  The student survived.

The flight was apparently one leg of a pilot training cross country.

The incident is known as “Controlled Flight Into Terrain,” or “CFIT,” in which a pilot flies a perfectly good airplane into the ground (in this case, the lake).