This video would make no sense at all without your comments as an experienced pilot. My respect for your knowledge has increased, as I can confirm your explanation of single shaft turboprop vs free turbine turboprop is completely accurate. I am a cranky old man who builds jet engines, and you know I have a low tolerance for misunderstanding. I am very impressed with your handling of the subject! With every video you make, I learn more about the work pilots do.

So sad, a young man working hard to build his hours to go to an airline. Rest In Peace my friend.

Regarding the ATC recordings - I clearly hear engine sound on the earlier transmissions. I don't hear any distinct tone from engines on the transmission where he says "engine failure." I ran the audio from the VAS Aviation channel through audio software (Izotope RX9) for the audio spectrum display. There are clear bands of the "engine buzz" in the earlier transmissions, and those bands are totally absent in the "engine failure" transmission, so based just on that audio, it looks/sounds like dual engine failure! (That said, particularly being run through KZfaq's processing, the audio I am hearing/looking at has been through the wringer so it will be less reliable than what NTSB investigators will check.)

I flew Metros back in the late 70's. As I remember the engine anti-ice had to be on prior to entering icing conditions, as placing it on too late would cause chunks of ice to be ingested. The NTS (negative torque sensing) was critical, and was a no-go item. On test flights where we turned the NTS off the aircraft would veer violently into the dead engine. Going into LAX, in VFR conditions, the Metro could hold 248 knots (VNE) to the marker and still slow down and configure while maintaining the glide slope. None of the jet aircraft could keep up on the parallel approaches, some even had to go around while trying to match the pace. It was truly a high performance aircraft. Pushing the props up to high rpm was hardly noticeable to the passengers due to the single shaft design of the Garret TPE 331, unlike the PT6. This allowed the aircraft to slow down while still descending on the glide path.

Blanc thanks for doing this video. Manny was my best friend and I talked to him on the 9th just before he went down. I just got done with his funeral and talked with his coworkers who think it may have been bad fuel icing that brought him down.

I just left the single pilot 135 cargo life. Definitely saw a degradation in safety from both company and the FAA. Flying for a medical company during covid was tough as we knew the importance of getting the job done. Eventually it was became apparent that it’s a “when” not “if” something happens. I had to get out, I’ve since switched to 121 and wouldn’t change a thing.

Thank you Juan for bringing this check ride craziness to the forefront. Prayers for the pilot’s family and friends.

Juan, I retired from your airline last year and am now flying these short and long Merlins. I greatly enjoy them and would never, ever voluntarily return to the 121 flying at Dallas, but these Merlins are demanding, as you said. One must respect them and their weaknesses.

Wow, that Bullhead City radio chatter is intense. If the Manchester pilot, flying alone, experienced a dual engine failure at night, in icing conditions, there is no way he could have pulled a rabbit out of the hat. Too much to do, and not enough time or altitude to do it.

the comments on juan's videos are often just as informative as his presentation.

Jeez, Juan! I flew the Metroliner years ago. My good friend’s son flies for Castle and knew the deceased (he was 23). I had counseled my friend’s son to get off the Metro (at Castle) ASAP. Fortunately, he transferred over to the Saab 340 (which is a two man crew) five weeks ago. I told him flying the Metro single pilot was not safe. And, you’re right the TPE 331:engine is VERY susceptible to icing. R I P.

You do a really good job of teleporting us into the cockpit with your emphasis and accelerating pace of reading. I close my eyes and feel Ike I am on the flight crew racing against the clock (altitude) to work the issue. The crashes bring me no joy. But each one of your play-by-play analyses makes me a safer pilot. Thank you, Juan,

I flew the Dog Rocket for several years single pilot at night in all kinds of weather conditions. What I will say, is that she flew like a champ, as long as everything was working fine. It didn’t take much to get the workload through the roof. This period in my aviation career definitely strengthened my relationship with God. Just sayin'.

I have several thousand hours in the SA227 Merlin IV Expediter single pilot. The airplane can be a handful but more so during a V1 or a V2 cut. A SE approach should not be that big of a deal. Unless maybe the NTS system failed? As for icing, I used to see flame outs in cruise frequently in icing conditions. Ice will build up on the prop dome and often go through the engine and cause a momentary loss of thrust. But with ignition on the thrust would almost immediately come back. Essentially just making the airplane yaw, getting your attention. And then go right back to normal. I had a loss of oil pressure once on the left engine, had to shut it down in flight. It was an empty ferry flight from Burbank to Ontario. Pretty much a non event with an empty airplane. At max weight with a failed engine? A different story. When I did my type rating in the Metro I already had several Jet type ratings, including in airliners. I took the Metro job because I was on furlough from an airline. The single pilot Metro rating was by far the hardest type rating I ever did. The airplane fly's much like a jet. But with out jet power!

Thank you for this quick and detailed response Juan. I’m the person who asked you to look into this earlier this week. I’m a member of a local volunteer emergency response team and I always have my radios on. Ironically my first info on this came from a Twitter tweet from a local resident stating…wow!!! Something just exploded behind my house, fire everywhere. Moments later my radios lit up. While not dispatched to this one I know a lot the people who were staged for it. It’s ironic I get such detailed info from a very knowledgeable person 3000 miles away from me before I hear anything from my local contacts. MHT built a beautiful passenger terminal about 20 years ago but nearly all its revenue is from freight. Constant air traffic in the vicinity of my home. I’m just to the east of the flight path for runway 35 and see frequent cargo aircraft coming and going. A sad tragedy that is more clearly understood. May the young man Rest In Peace. Thank you again Juan. Fly safe.

Man oh man, these CVRs, even the transcripts, get my blood-pressure up. I'm glad the '97 crew survived. I was surprised when you said that. Sorry for the loss in Manchester. Thanks for another great video, Juan.

A SA226 is single pilot 135 approved. I was an operator and was strong on the similulator training and induced mulitple emergencies. I've had experienced pilots just get up from his seat and quit during a high stress training session on two occasions. That airplane is a HANDFUL without having an emergency. In this situation, I believe he was at power-lever-idle reducing airspeed descending into icing conditions. At the point of introducing power, the engines were not advancing in power as expected. The demand for engine accelerations was inhibited by ice buildup in the air intake not allowing enought air to advance power demand. My thought is he hit the ground with both power levers firewalled. The engines would flame under those conditions. The NTS is adjustable and some adjust for more flatter pitch for aircraft slowdown. If this were the case, it would have aggrivated the situatiion. I landed in Muskeegan one night with an opening in the air inlet on a 226 no larger than a baseball while running high power on approach.... I operated 6 of these airplanes and was glad to get rid of them....so sorry for that young fellow and his family!

This is absolutely shocking what your saying about the complete dereliction of duty from the FAA.

Juan, I’m not a pilot, but your videos and your insights about aviating, as well as your technical and mechanical explanations are fascinating and very educational. I have a much greater appreciation for everything that pilots, crews, controllers deal with keeping all of us safe. Keep up the fantastic work! R.I.P. to this young pilot. Thoughts and prayers with his family and friends.

Thanks Juan for another nice job. Item one, I am sorry for not being around anymore at AA to help out. I gave a 75/76 R-18 on 1/10/2020 and fully expected to be back the next day. Two and a half weeks later I left the hospital and haven't flown or been back to work since. Miss it. Item two. I flew F/O on the early metros for Commuter Airlines in Binghampton NY in the very late 70's early 80's. I think it was the model 1, short wings, small engines with jato assist. What a pig that thing was. It was a challenge to handle on one engine empty never mind with 19 pax, bags and freight. The old San Antonio Sewer pipe had a very high wing loading, 45/1 comes to mind. Our chief pilot got one to the ground gear up at Broome County airport in icing conditions stating that had he lowered the gear they wouldn't have made it to the airport. Back then they had big "Spade" doors on the back of the gear legs. We always thought the jatos were just to get you to the scene of the accident faster. Lastly one of your other viewers commented on how easy this thing was to slow down and that is so true. Watched my captain stay even with a concord on parallel approaches to 31L and R at Kennedy and still land on the numbers and on speed. The Jetstream was the same way (same engine) Have crossed the O/M at 5000 afl and had to add power to make the runway, in training of course... Thoughts and prayers for this young man's family and may we lose no more young men to such things...

I used to fly the Mitsubishi MU2 with the same engines. The Continuous Ignition system at the time had a duty cycle which limited its use to 5 minutes on and 5 minutes off. Therefore, when entering icing conditions, you would only have the system on for one engine at a time, which, at least in theory, would prevent both engines from flaming out at the same time. I remember one time having an engine flame out in icing conditions and it re-lit as soon as I turned the continuous ignition on (luckily). Never gave it a second thought until now. Thanks for the videos. I always find them to be very informative and a must-watch.

I flew the Merlin early in my career. Very busy airplane in a single pilot scenario. I had an in flight shutdown due to a chip light. Lets just say I'm glad it was VFR wx and a nice long runway, they're a handful on a good night. I kept those 331's heated up. The wings had boots that sometimes worked. Sorry for the young pilots demise. These types of flying jobs are always going to be out there. Even for a company with a good reputation and well maintained aircraft it takes a pilot with a special kind of grit to survive. I spent four and a half years doing it before the airlines came calling. I consider myself lucky to have lasted that long, there were many accidents. Single pilot 135 night freight is as tough as it gets.

ABSOLUTELY LOVE Juan, as I am a commercial pilot he is so much more impressive communicating than I could ever be! Keep up the great work and prayers for that awesome young man.... 😢

I dont have the mental capabilities to come close to being a pilot. I'd have a nervous breakdown on the taxi way. RIP to the young man. Very sad.

I am always appreciative of Juan and his good descriptions of safe flying and safe procedures. I am also pleased he like his friend "Peter the Swede" that he does not take check flights lightly nor is disrespectful of basic flying proceedures.

Very sad situation. I can't believe the part of the video when you are discussing the FAA and them having Pilot's video for their check ride. Thanks for sharing that one. This information is appalling. I realize this is a 135 operation different from my upcoming private pilot check ride but wow! Prayers to his family. Thanks as always for the high caliber content and discussion.

Thanks again Juan; I was a Metro engineer for many years in New Zealand, freight flights at night but always TWO pilots as it was considered that there was too much for one pilot to do if there were any abnormals!

My brother used to fly cargo in the Metro... these guys are usually just trying to build enough multi-engine / complex hours so they can get hired on at a regional airline. They're paid (barely) minimum wage and put in impossible conditions... something needs to be done to improve safety. Perhaps mandating a co-pilot would be a good start.

Well there you go again, trying to make us understand what you could face on any given day. Just outstanding Juan. Your the perfect reason that I chose to be a passenger not a pilot. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and you family.

Geeze Juan, you must have been a scoutmaster telling spooky stories around a campfire! Wow, you make it feel like we are right there with them! My jaw hit the floor when I heard how young this (qualified) pilot was and THEN a single pilot on this handful of aircraft when it all goes bad with no room and no time to save it. Truly a sad day for everyone…

I worked at a commuter airline in the early 80’s. Short story. We had metro on final to St Louis in IFR conditions with icing. Both engines failed on short final after clearing the clouds and in warmer air. It was found that ice formed on the engine nose cones ( not heated) and broke off into the engine inlets blocking the airflow and caused both engines to flameout. Landed safely. Our aircraft were modified to have continuous ignition auto turn on if N1 dropped below 90%.

I flew Metro 3’s and 23’s for a commuter in Canada from 99 to 04. Everything was two pilots and we were all pretty experienced back then. I’d much rather fly a 737 single pilot than the Metroliner! It was a fun airplane but pretty busy and the couple autopilot equipped tails we had were almost useless especially with an aft cg. Poor kid had the deck stacked against him there. What an industry.

My old instructor used to fly checks, (back in the 90's), at night in a Chieftan... 2KC, (Two Killer Chicken, I'll never foget it ;-) We flew into Rochester NY one night following a 737 and we were gaining on him on the glideslope!! They really push those a/c to the limit, (and beyond), they get every ounce of performance out of those a/c!!! The night controllers know how they operate, know they are REALLY good pilots, and they trust each other!! But, it only takes one serious issue to bring the whole system down... I heard of a Baron pilot who went to add flaps and only one side deployed!!! He said the controller cleared him to do anything he needed to do NOT to hit the tower he was headed for!!! He said he had a instructor tell him, " if something bad happens, immediately UNDO the last thing you did!!!" He said that advice saved his life!!!

Your illustration had me on the edge of my jump-seat. Rest in Peace lost pilot man.

Merlin's have a big annunciator panel above the center panel. It includes deice equipment function. The engine ignitors can be heard over the pilots headsets. It's crazy to enter icing conditions without checking engine inlet heat, and ignitors with the Garrett 331 engine. Loss of an engine with full flaps and gear down the airplane is a rock. The flight controls is like steering a truck without power steering. True you had hold high speed to the outer marker and still slow enough to land but why do it flying at night in IMC conditions?

This is insane. flat insane. GOPRO? being an old freight ape, and flew in all kinds of weather, I cannot fathom this.. I have PT 6 experience. No Garretts. "Lord, guard and guide, those who fly in our great spaces in the sky, protect them always in the air in storm cloud deep or sunlight fair. "-one version of the Navy Hymn.

I started out in 1986 on the Fairchild Metro. Essentially a stretch Merlin designed to carry 19 Pax under 135. And I took early out last year as a B777 FO. The covid mess made the job a pain in the ass so I split. I miss it, but not that much. The Merlin was a pretty sweet T-Prop. The gear and flap speeds are very high. This allows you to fly at 250kts in level flight until about 5-6 miles out. Then close the throttles and push the SPEED levers to MAX and it slows from 250 to 200 in a hurry. First notch of flaps is 220 or so as I recall, the second notch is 200 and the gear speed is 186 (?). So while he may have been hauling ass, it's possible to scream in and still reach a reasonably stabilized state by 1000 AGL. The two calls to ATC regarding engine failure were a waste of his time and concentration. Once on final approach, ATC can't do a thing for you. The runway is already yours, and even if it's not, you're likely landing unless you've got everything going for you and decide to go around. But I can't see why you'd want to do that. Regarding NTS, it was something we ALWAYS tested because it was so essential. There is no disconnect between the gearbox and the gas generator as there is on a PT6. The first time you spin the prop by hand you'll realize just how much drag that engine is capable of producing if the NTS fails. Without it, you're in trouble, right now. Of course, it's possible that he lost ONE and pulled the wrong STOP AND FEATHER knob and sealed his fate. Who knows. Regarding IGN, the early Merlins/Metros had LOUSY IGN systems. They did NOT have constant duty ignition systems, they had duty limits. So you had to run one engine for a while, then both, then shut one down for cooling, etc. So, he may NOT have had both of them sparking. It was a terrible setup. The Garrett engine is also fairly intolerant of ingesting water and this makes the IGN very important. Some guys didn't like to use Bleed air ENG A/I because it took a small amount of power and reduced your speed. But his was a misnomer at low altitudes since what really limited you was the 250 knot (below 10K) restriction. So they'd ice up the engine on the descent and then flip on ENG ANTI ICE without FIRST turning on the sparks. The ice melts and goes into the engine.....poof, there goes your engine(s) just like that. Stupid. One crew parked a Metro in a farmer's field (at night) after they flamed 'em both out. Really stupid. This accident is a damn shame. RIP pilot guy, and peace to your family, when and if they can find it. Engine out at night SP must have been a handful.

I have 1500 hrs in Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner SA227 in the early 90's, 2 crew Part 135 Passenger commuter. The SA226 is lowered powered short wing version from the last variation the SA227.

RIP, Juan your description of the metroliner's landing at the end, had me on the edge of my seat, nice work, cheers and Merry Xmas;-))

Thanks again Captain Juan Browne for very good coverage/early analysis of this tragic event. In Kathryn's Report, it seemed in the comments section some folks had nothing good to say about Castle Air, their culture and management style. This is not an anomaly, unfortunately, in the 135 business, especially freight. The Metroliner II is for sure a hot airplane and has to be flown. Not much wing area out there.

Thank JB..this happened about 5 miles from my house..sad RIP Mano

I have thousands of hours in that series of airplanes and I can assure you under certain circumstances the airplane requires 2 well trained human brains to operate safely.

RIP young man ..... Good on those guys for making it out of that dual engine failure he kept flying, that's the most important thing never give up

No hum from the props, sounds like he was in glider mode when he called engine failure.

Former 208 here - per your request - on the first transmission, clear engine noise, however, on the final emergency call, no engine noises detected. . .just a whole lot of quiet other than the pilot's voice. I didn't hear either one of them running.

Thanks Juan! 57 year old aircraft……….. All our infrastructure is OLD😱

I was an A&P mechanic for ten years on the SA227 metroliner and I can tell you that every pilot I worked with that flew it, hated being single pilot in it. If it wasn’t poor pressurization, it was fuel quantity issues, nose wheel steering or maybe SRL problems. My heart goes out to this pilot because I know exactly what he was dealing with when flying that aircraft.

I flew the Merlin III and it can be a handful. Thanks for the time spent on these incidents and your unfettered insight on the current state of aviation.

The co pilot on the r4d was the son of a friend of mine. The pic was the company owner. I showed my friend your video and he told me he didn't realize just how close he was to losing his son.

I'll go out on a limb here and say the pilot was aware of the icing conditions and flew faster and higher than normal to minimize the engine exposure to the icing. Ultimately, the engines both iced up and failed and there wasn't anything the pilot could do to make it to the runway. What will be interesting to know is if the pilot engaged the ignition override or if other anti-icing systems were engaged. Not sure if these airplanes have boots... but I'd bet this accident was caused by weather and/or pilot error in engaging the anti-ice systems.

ill never forget working at BWI GA side a young man that flew MU-2's at night for bank of America going up to Pennsylvania and back all night crashed on final approach on his last run as i watched it freaked me out for a long time to see that 200 feet in front of you and here its almost 20 yr later. those pilots who work for cargo and etc fly those routes back and forth all night in the most not so safe planes its always sad to see this stuff happen rip.

You reading that script was very scary , so glad they survived !

I have had thousands of hours in the metro/ merlin and love the aircraft. Flying without an autopilot is a task, but when equipped with an a/p it is fast and everything happens. Flying down the length of Nevada at midnight single pilot no a/p was not fun. I have flown on a single engine before, but it was high noon.

My gut says the high ground speed was as a result of the very large weather system that was driving very fast winds aloft from the southwest to northeast last weekend. I flew from Louisiana to NYC last Saturday morning and had 135kts on the tail. These winds stayed fairly high down to about 2,000 AGL, if memory serves.

Zero excuse for the FAA staying in their office due to the CV.... Hey, I work a job in a plant with thousands of workers, been going outside in the public almost everyday since May 2020. Let's all be real here, this is getting blown out of proportion, people need to go back to normal and anything that requires in person inspection or checks, should be done.

@blancolirio Sorry to hear of the loss of another pilot, always respectfully and professionally reported. But man, I teared up you reading that CVR log thinking these are their final words only to hear "These guys survived".

Beautifully and simply explained Juan. Thank you for your great work in aviation which will definitely save lives.

Juan another sad outcome for aviation thank God there are guys like you in the industry evaluating these incidents ,it's very obvious that pilots need to be very clear thinkers especially when issue,s start unfolding ,I've learned so much from your posts I have the greatest respect for all pilots and the maintenance engineers that keep us all travelling safely . Well done WALSHY Adelaide

I have about 1800 hrs on the SA226/7’s single and dual pilot ops, but 20 years ago, what I remember is that you,unlike the PT6, you cannot slam the power levers closed and always need positive torque on the garrets , somewhere around 10-12%, you slow down with configuration and it slows fast ( you could do 240kias to 5nm) . Slamming the levers closed with activate the NTS, you will have momentary flame out. Sad accident but a lovely plane to fly. I agree the last transmission is void of engine noise, those Garrets are loud.

Thanks for that reading, Juan. Chilling!

What a great review Juan! It now appears it was dusk engine by how fast the speed deteriorated. Merlin’s may be a handful but they are built like tanks and super fast. The Garrett’s are super efficient and as you mentioned have fantastic throttle response compared to the PT6. They also have a much longer TBO of 5000 hours v 3600 for pf6. I hope they find out what went wrong. Tragic to have this outcome.

Thanks for this report. I flew Jetstream J31’s (same engines) for a west coast regional in the nineties and had a engine flame out descending into CIC for the ILS one dark stormy night. We’re picking up ice and suspect a chunk came off the spinner and was ingested into the left engine. The continuous ignition was on so it relight almost instantly but we both looked at each other with that look! A dual engine flameout is very hard to understand here, one thing is both engines were probably at flight idle for some time while he was trying to slow down. The intakes on the 331 are tiny, like the size of a softball, doesn’t take much to snuff it out.

Once again, a clear concise report of what possibly happened, Juan. Us non aviation types appreciate your knowledge

Tanks Juan, for another insightful video. Firstly my condolences to family and friends of the young pilot who perished. You asked about the background noise in the final radio transmission from the aircraft. I have 7 years and 2300 hours time operating the TPE331 (in my case they were installed on a C441) and i can confirm your suspicion that there was no engine noise evident in the background of the final call. You could clearly hear background engine noise in the previous calls - and I can personally vouch for the fact that if there are any TPE331s running in the vicinity, you will hear them!!! The NTS (Negative Torque Sensing) System does not actually feather the props, it simply drives the blades into a coarser position (to reduce drag) - This is NOT an auto feather system (as fitted to aircraft equipped with PT6 engines). So it becomes IMPERATIVE to actually feather the prop on a failed engine to achieve any glide performance at all. Early indications support your theory of both engines icing up and failing to respond when called upon after glideslope intercept.

It makes you appreciate the amazing PT6 engine even more

Minor adjustment: NTS= Negative Torque Sensing and that is the system for sure.

On Thursday I was standing next to the left wing of an OLD MERLIN, and looking at the age and kind of shape the airplane was in and talking to the 2- 23 year old that where flying this Merlin , I felt so sad for them for being a crew on this Merlin aircraft.

I’m currently flying the SA-227, 135 night freight. Sometimes I have an FO sometimes I don’t. Either way they are a handful, my sim training was the hardest thing I’ve done in aviation thus far, and had me questioning my choice to fly a Metro at times. In the last audio clip it sounded like a dual engine failure. These planes are very old, tired, and sometimes poorly maintained. RIP to my fellow freight dog.

Wow that was intense! Thank you Juan, great reporting as usual.

God Rest with you my brother. Prayers for the souls he left behind.

UPDATE 12/18 new home security cam footage: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/rtShpaVyl5_Sipc.html

Thanks for this episode of aviation educational session. R.I.P to the pilot who lost his live in the accident. Enjoyed the moment of you reading the cockpit conversation record. It's like creating a mental film following your vivid reiterating of what happened in the other airplane that suffered dual engine failure.

I flew MU-2’s for years prior to my 121 career flying cancelled checks when that was a thing, way back in the day with the TPE331 in the late 90’s. The sound sounds like the NTS was starting to feather the prop, but the NTS only feathers it to about 80%. You have to beta follow up (push the power lever forward, not back like most failed engine procedures) the failed engine to fully feather it and quickly or things get nasty very quickly. Cowl heat and igniters are crucial prior to entering ANY icing conditions. TPE have such a cowl design that ice builds up quickly and any icing on the nose of the MU2 was also a concern as it had a tendency to fly into the inlet (so leave ignitors on even after leaving icing conditions was our procedure at that time). Not sure if the nose on the Merlin has the same issue. Some of the most rewarding flying I ever did, but lost a few friends in this type of flying. This was fun, challenging and constantly in the yellow type of flying, but I loved it. Best job I ever had.

Good narrative, Juan. So much data to be acquired on this for further discussion. The NTSB is good on equipment failure vs. crew issues. Initial engine ops will be out soon. Crew issues may take a while.

I fly a TPE331-10 equipped C441. NTS is actually “negative torque sensing. And yes, it’s called “ignition override“ and it isn’t automatic with engine anti-ice activation. NTS check is done in every preflight.

The sound you hear in the background of the final radio call is the igniters. I would guess that (like the C441 I used to fly) the auto-ignition (if installed) would sometimes come on when the power levers were brought to flight idle, in flight, otherwise you can manually turn them on for flight in icing conditions, heavy rain or wet runway landings. Engine anti-ice & ignition would be turned on prior to entering icing conditions.

Metroliners single ops scary in the best of times !

I flew a Merlin IIIb for a couple of years. To say it was a "handful" is an understatement. Garretts are unforgiving if you forget to put on anti-ice. I've had a Garrett NTS on me, but I experienced audio exclusion during the event. I identified the failed engine with a combination of rudder and engine gages. During my engine failure, the NTS'ing of the engine was very pronounced causing a mild dutch roll with a pronounced yaw oscillation. This was very different than in the simulator.

Living inside of50NM of KMHT, Boston-Manchester Metro I was aware this 'accident' occurred. You mentioned how the FAA now 'hides in their cubicles'... I hadn't thought of that nor the seemingly useless 'Go-Pro' video for 'check rides'. I did think that a 23yo attempting a nighttime landing with an engine(s?) out would be difficult under daylight conditions, never mind 'icing' and nighttime. Seems that due to unnecessary implemented 'restrictions' another should've been added. This should've been a 2 Pilot operation, and actually one with a lot more familiarity with this aircraft. A young man died needlessly!

This is the best compact teaching documentation to present to aspiring professional pilots: the fundamental differences in operating twins with the different turbine engines, as well as the special case of manually operating the engine controller on the PC 12 , some time ago. Thank you Juan !

Castle is based at my home airport. I have Friends who have flown for them and acquaintances that currently do. This one hit home for sure when I heard about it last week. My prayers are still with the friends and Family of the lost pilot. We were close in age...

Footage of this crash at the end of this comment: Drove down to the scene of this before work, but it was blocked. This one is tough, for multiple reasons. I flew single-pilot, twin-turbine for Wiggins (cargo) out of MHT for a year. The 99 was a good airplane, but any abnormalities increased your workload substantially. I knew of one Pilot who went to Ameriflight and mentioned that the Metro was a lot to handle, it seems like it’s built a reputation for difficult single-pilot operations when issues arise. Coming from flight instruction into the single-pilot turbine world, there always seemed to be plenty to learn, and you had to learn “it” quick. Looking at some photos that were sent to me from the crash-site (and after looking at this video,) there are signatures that would suggest that this was a Vmc/stall-spin type of accident. I always hate making any sort of accusation before an NTSB report is released, but so much of the information is out there now. After going through the DOT/FAA Accident Investigator Program, we were taught about crash signatures and what it could tell us. The fact that there was little debris when the fire crews arrived indicates that this was a high-speed crash (likely vertical speed.) The elevator was slightly up, and the rudder was deflected in the direction of the failed engine (signifying the roll towards the dead engine.) The Pilot also mentioning that there was an engine failure, while he was likely in a “dirty” configuration likely left him little time to react. I’ve also been told that Metroliner VMCs are somewhere upwards of 104 knots for VMC certification, for his possible configuration on short final, we can imagine it was higher than that. Also, I was up late that night when it happened, and recall light ice-like precipitation hitting my window. It wasn’t great weather that night, and it would be difficult to tell from the remaining debris of ice had accumulated on the wings, inlet, etc. during the approach. Here is the video: www.tiktok.com/@plane_dude/video/7041009043518901550?_d=secCgwIARCbDRjEFSACKAESPgo8UTdnFfglnNKOqppk8F6BRjwz5KmrrNNhECmIRR81G4kaShwqn4fR0kksz40UDp9h%2FZjPuGrFDT8IpGQ0GgA%3D&checksum=7b7e7bad30edcb30990d7668a412c5766d4a27ea54a7350fa668b53e34aab465&language=en&preview_pb=0&sec_user_id=MS4wLjABAAAAPHYNwUuJUQz72Nr0u8O-m61iwoKALGSkSc5gtw4F2tcVt5lrLQMCGWeGVa5Zs-8R&share_app_id=1233&share_item_id=7041009043518901550&share_link_id=687C5C6E-A991-4252-8945-E6BE6B8AEA54&source=h5_m&timestamp=1639448762&tt_from=copy&u_code=2g31j108776c0&user_id=59201777044049920&_r=1

Young pilot in a twin engine turbo has his hands full! Anything goes south during takeoff and landings the workload becomes enormous in a short period of time. These accidents are some of the most violent here on the earth and could not imagine the horror this poor kid went through during his last remaining breadths. God Bless these brave Aviators!

Before there was a pilot shortage, airfreight companies were flying "Metro's" single pilot. The company I worked for lost a young man, departing FWA, at night, single pilot. (2001?) The immediate reaction was to add an F.O. which increased overall safety. But...here we are AGAIN!

Great reporting Juan love all your updates

"These guys survived" WOW! and,I had no idea about GoPro checkrides.

Perhaps one of the most prominent examples of the the the Swearingen Merlin’s susceptibility to engine failure due to inlet icing is the crash of N500AK while on approach to Tri-Cities Regional Airport in Blountville Tennessee. This was the crash that killed 1992 NASCAR champion Alan Kulwicki. The investigation determined that probable cause of the accident was the pilot's failure to operate the engine inlet anti-ice system properly. Great video as always and thank you for all of the great insight and information.

Your most compelling video yet. The readback of the dual pilot crash transcript was riveting and informative with side comments.

“Come on sweetheart, glide on in.” When you read that, your voice gave me chills. I felt connected more than if I was reading the transcript.

What a nightmare for this pilot. RIP young man.

Good discussion. I'm no expert, but I do know that sometimes it's more prudent to scrap a flight and wait for a better day, especially if icing involved. Sometimes discretion can be the better part of valor. Sorry for this loss. RIP.

Another excellent and informative report Juan. Prayers to the pilots family.

Excellent review and interpretation. Whatever the cause was, single pilot operations on such aircraft at night with all the operational pressure surrounding us is not were we should be. Thanks for your efforts in promiting safety.👍👍🏆

“Shortage” or shortage of “free cheap pilots” or better yet ones that will pay for hours in multi turbine? Like ameriflight did for a while?

Juan! Great work thank you.

I really enjoy listening to your expert analysis of these events. You have a good idea of ‘the probable cause’ already. Keep up the good work. It’s hugely appreciated.

Single pilot IFR at night in a Merlin or Metro is as tough as aviation gets. I've done night freight for 14 years. The company I used to fly for would push us to fly clean, 230kts to 4 miles, always. They did have a change of heart when they realised how fast things can go wrong when you are doing that kind of stuff. No manufacturer would suggest flying their product in such a way.

I flew these single pilot, back in the ‘80’s. Had a buddy that lost an engine on short final, due to igniters not being on. Ended up in a snow bank. Wasn’t hurt. Lucky.

This video was too good. Shan't watch the accident investigations for a while. Very good video, you've reached a new level.

Stopped breathing whilst listening to your radio conversation read-back… stressed the living daylights out of me as I once experienced a dual engine out during a night approach whilst flying a smaller twin… Thank God I was able to solve the problem before buying the farm… man I was shaken.