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The crew on a Hawker 900XP (N900VA) was performing a stall warning and systems check-in before spiraling into terrain in a remote area near the Utah-Colorado border on Feb. 7. The flight track data showed the Hawker in a rapid descent in the shape of a corkscrew before impacting terrain and catching fire. Both the pilot and copilot were killed in the crash.RELATED STORY:Hawker 900XP crashes in Utah, killing two
A Hawker 900XP, operated by Vici Aviation and managed by Clay Lacy Aviation, arrived at the West Star Aviation's facility at Grand Junction Regional Airport (GJT) in Grand Junction, Colorado on Dec. 20, 2023 for routine maintenance. According to preliminary information NTSB investigators received from the facility, multiple routine inspections have been completed on this plane, including a requirement to remove the wing-leading edges and TKS panels to check for cracks and signs of corrosion. After the inspections were complete, the plane returned to service on Feb. 6.
The flight crew was planning to fly the plane from GJT to Gig Harbor, Washington on the day of the crash to perform a stall warning and system check, which is following the airframe manufacturer's requirements. The requirements are listed in the pilot's operating manual and include a required altitude of above 10,000 ft above ground level, 10,000 ft above clouds and below 18,000 ft mean sea level. The check flight can only be conducted during day visual meteorological conditions and with a good visual horizon, with the autopilot disengaged, an operative stall identification system, the external surfaces free of ice, an empty ventral tank and weather radar on standby.
The preliminary automatic dependent system broadcast data revealed that the plane left GJT at 10:37 local time and entered a climb on a southwest heading. The crew asked ATC for a block of altitude from FL180 to FL200 and this request was approved. The plane then circled to the northwest and continued to climb, leveling off at about 10:43, near the top of the altitude block. Three minutes later the flight track data showed that the plane began a rapid descent in a circular pattern, resembling the shape of a corkscrew. The plane rotated numerous times before the track ended at 10:47.RELATED STORY:Crew received 3 low engine oil pressure warnings moments before deadly Challenger 604 crash
The plane crashed into a remote area of flat open terrain near Westwater, Utah about 25 nm northwest of GJT at an elevation of about 4,800 ft msl and oriented on a west heading. The major structures of the plane were all found at the scene and a debris path was traced from the main wreckage to the end of a burn area about 200 ft long and 175 ft wide at the widest point, oriented on a magnetic heading of 345 degrees. A silhouette of the left wing, fuselage and both engines were found about 10 ft south of the main wreckage. The plane's flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder were both recovered from the crash site and the wreckage was recovered for further examination.
The Grand County Sheriff's Office reported that the two pilots were Paul Michael Berliner and Darrin Du Ray Towe.