Particle.news
Download on the App Store

NTSB Preliminary Report Details Spiral Descent in Crash That Killed Songwriter Brett James

Early findings point to a tightening turn on approach with no evidence of engine failure.

Overview

  • The pilot’s final transmission reported 6,800 feet and an intention to make a 360-degree turn to land at Macon County Airport, with no further radio contact recorded.
  • ADS-B and surveillance video show a descending left turn beginning around 6,300 feet, a pass over the runway, then a tightening spiral and impact about a quarter-mile from the airfield.
  • Witnesses near a nearby elementary school saw the aircraft at low altitude rocking its wings before it rolled inverted and dropped behind trees; no injuries occurred on the ground.
  • The preliminary report notes flight control continuity and no signs of engine failure, and the recovered aircraft is undergoing further examination with no probable cause yet determined.
  • The Cirrus SR22T departed Nashville’s John C. Tune Airport on an IFR flight that transitioned to a visual approach in clear conditions; Brett James, 57, his wife Melody Carole, 59, and her daughter Meryl Maxwell Wilson, 28, died in the crash.