xpost: 3 dead in small-plane crash in East Palo Alto (Tesla Motors Executives)

[phantom power]

Source: San Francisco Chronicle
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4272892&mesg_id=4272892

The plane crashed on the 1200 block of Beech Street near Pulgas Avenue about 7:55 a.m., said Lt. Ray Lunny of the San Mateo County Sheriff's Department. A house on the street was damaged and the plane destroyed three cars, Lunny said, but there were no reports of injuries on the ground.

Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said the plane was a twin-engine Cessna 310 that had taken off from Palo Alto Airport, about a mile to the southwest, and was bound for Hawthorne Municipal Airport in Los Angeles County.

The plane was owned by Doug Bourn, a senior electrical engineer for Tesla Motors, the electric-car company said. It was not known whether Bourn was onboard.

The cause of the crash was not known, but there were reports that the plane hit an electrical tower or wires on takeoff. There was also thick fog where the plane crashed.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/17/BA391C32O5.DTL




3 Tesla Execs Dead In Palo Alto Plane Crash

A twin-engine Cessna piloted by a "high-ranking official at Tesla" crashed into an East Palo Alto neighborhood today killing the pilot and two others on board. A Tesla spokesperson has confirmed three employees were involved in the crash.

http://jalopnik.com/5473942/3-tesla-execs-dead-in-palo-alto-plane-crash

[Codeine]

1. Low-visibility flying

can be a real bear for pilots without a great deal of experience at IFR. :(

[Sal Minella]

2. Flying "VFR" was mentioned in "Avatar" --

The I in IFR must be "Instrument," the V in VFR must be "visual" -- but what are the F and the R?

[Codeine]

3. Flight Rules. nt

[Sal Minella]

4. Ah. Of course! Thank you. n/t