The N9M had undergone a decades-long restoration, carried out by volunteers, and had appeared in multiple air shows in the decade preceding the crash. The type was considered in aviation circles to be a “grandfather” to the modern flying wings later built by Northrop- Grumman, including the B-2 Stealth Bomber. “We wouldn’t have allowed him into the plane if he had been anything but an exceptional pilot.”įederal Aviation Records show the N9M was the last one flying in the world, of the four that were built. “He was an absolutely safe pilot,” Wilkins said. He dismissed the suggestion that Vopat may have tried an aerobatic maneuver, triggering the accident. “He was a real big aviation enthusiast, and he was always here volunteering when he wasn’t flying for a living,” Wilkins said. Wilkins described Vopat, who had extensive flying experience, as “meticulous and dedicated” in his work. Museum Executive Director Jerry Wilkins told CNS that Vopat, a longtime friend, was “taking the plane around the patch” to see how it handled after unspecified mechanical work done in preparation for the show. It was slated to appear in the museum’s annual “Planes of Fame Air Show” held the weekend after the crash. The 1940s-era N9M had been part of the historic fleet maintained by the Planes of Fame Air Museum at Chino Airport. “Shortly after, the airplane entered a steep right turn and descended into the ground in a nose-low attitude.” “Several witnesses said that after the maneuver, the airplane `wobbled from side to side’ before the canopy separated,” the agency stated. However, the narrative indicated Vopat had performed a “barrel roll.” Nothing conclusive was provided in the report. NTSB investigators reached the crash site the following day, and a preliminary report summarizing events followed 10 days later. “If it were not for the heroics of these two individuals, CRC would have lost numerous lives,” she said. They burn pretty quickly.”ĬRC Warden Cynthia Tampkins credited both Dickson and Vopat with actions intended for the preservation of life. Those dorms are World War II-era structures. “If the pilot would have hit 25 feet in any direction, the impact would have probably killed people, and then the burning fuel would have killed more. “The plane went down, literally, right beside a dorm,” Morales said. The consensus among the witnesses was that Vopat had desperately fought to keep the plane from going into the fully occupied structures within the prison perimeter. Morales said one of the men who dove for cover inside the box suffered superficial cuts, but was otherwise fine. Several Riverside County Fire Department engine crews reached the scene five minutes later and assisted with containment. “They had to let the fire burn itself out.” Throwing water on that makes it worse,” CDCR Lt. “The remains were composed of (wood) and magnesium. There were none.Ī prison fire crew comprised of inmate-trustees reached the location two minutes later and contained but did not immediately knock down the flames. The officer said he checked for signs of life in the remnants of the destroyed N9M. Fearing the flames would enter the enclosure, he again led the men out of harm’s way, jumping over the flaming debris to open space. Thankfully, no one was hit.”Īccording to Dickson, a “wall of flame” faced the men as they emerged from the box. “I didn’t see it, but I felt it, and there was large fiery debris going through the air. “Two to three seconds later, there was an impact,” the officer said. One of the engines was turning on and off, and the other was humming along nicely.”ĭickson estimated that the single-seat twin-engine plane, with both propellers mounted behind the cockpit, was 150 feet above the prison when “the pilot kind of did a loopy, flip-flop maneuver,” possibly trying to regain control of the ill-fated N9M. “I heard the airplane, and the sound caught my attention, so I looked up,” California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation Officer Robert Dickson told City News Service. The National Transportation & Safety Board has not released its conclusions about what might have brought down the historic aircraft, but eyewitness accounts may provide insights. The Northrop N9M flying wing was on a post-maintenance flight and had just departed Chino Municipal Airport, piloted by 51-year-old David Michael Vopat of Chino, when it crashed within the fenced grounds of the California Rehabilitation Center on Fifth Street, just west of Interstate 15, on the afternoon of April 22, 2019. RIVERSIDE - An airplane that was the last of its kind went down a year ago Wednesday, taking the life of the pilot and nearly injuring inmates and staff at a Norco prison, under circumstances that federal aviation investigators are continuing to probe.
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