Draft:2002 Eveleth King Air A100 crash
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | October 25, 2002 |
| Summary | Loss of control and impact with terrain |
| Site | Near Eveleth, Minnesota, United States |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Beechcraft King Air A100 |
| Operator | Aviation Charter, Inc. |
| Registration | N41BE |
| Flight origin | St. Paul Downtown Airport, Saint Paul, Minnesota |
| Destination | Eveleth–Virginia Municipal Airport, Eveleth, Minnesota |
| Passengers | 6 |
| Crew | 2 |
| Fatalities | 8 |
| Survivors | 0 |
On October 25, 2002, a Beechcraft King Air A100, owned and operated by Aviation Charter, Inc., crashed near Eveleth, Minnesota, killing all six passengers and both pilots on board. The aircraft was transporting U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone, his wife Sheila, daughter Marcia, and campaign aides Tom Lapic, Mary McEvoy, and Will McLaughlin to Eveleth–Virginia Municipal Airport; they were scheduled to attend the funeral of Martin Rukavina, the father of Minnesota state representative Tom Rukavina. The accident threw the highly competitive 2002 U.S. Senate election in Minnesota, in which Wellstone was running for a third term in office, into chaos just 11 days before it was set to occur.[1]
A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation determined that the flight crew failed to maintain adequate airspeed while attempting to execute the VOR approach as they neared a runway, causing the plane to irrecoverably stall. On its descent, the craft splintered and its remnants subsequently caught on fire.[2]
References
- ^ Ragsdale, Jim; Piña, Phillip (October 26, 2002). "U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone killed in plane crash along with his wife, daughter and five others". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved April 17, 2024.
- ^ Loss of Control and Impact With Terrain, Aviation Charter, Inc., Raytheon (Beechcraft) King Air A100, N41BE, Eveleth, Minnesota, October 25, 2002 (PDF) (Report). Washington, D.C.: National Transportation Safety Board. November 18, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2024.