 The forward fuselage and left engine of the aircraft after the accident | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | October 24, 2004 (2004-10-24) |
| Summary | Controlled flight into terrain in inclement weather[1] |
| Site | Stuart, Virginia, USA |
| Aircraft | |
 ABeechcraft Super King Air 200, similar to the one involved in the crash | |
| Aircraft type | Beechcraft Super King Air 200 |
| Operator | Hendrick Motorsports |
| Registration | N501RH |
| Flight origin | Concord Regional Airport Concord, North Carolina |
| Destination | Blue Ridge Airport Martinsville, Virginia |
| Passengers | 8 |
| Crew | 2 |
| Fatalities | 10 |
| Survivors | 0 |
On October 24, 2004, aBeechcraft Super King Air 200 aircraft,registered N501RH[2] and owned byNASCAR teamHendrick Motorsports, crashed into mountainous terrain inStuart, Virginia, during a missed approach toBlue Ridge Airport inMartinsville, Virginia. The aircraft was transporting eight passengers and two flight crew to Martinsville so they could attend theNASCAR event atMartinsville Speedway that afternoon.
All ten people on board were killed; among them, members of the Hendrick family including John Hendrick, president of Hendrick Motorsports, his twin daughters, andRicky Hendrick, formerBusch Series driver and heir to the Hendrick empire.[3][4] Hendrick Motorsports staff involved includes Kimberly and Jennifer Hendrick, General Manager Jeff Turner, and chief engine builderRandy Dorton. The pilots were Richard Tracy and Elizabeth Morrison. Other passengers include Joe Jackson, an executive atDuPont and Scott Lathram,Tony Stewart's pilot.
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The King Air took off fromConcord, North Carolina, at 11:57 amEST, carrying eight passengers and two flight crew. At the time, a low level overcast system persisted throughout the region requiring the pilots to shoot the localizer 30 approach. Due to a plane landing ahead of them, the aircraft entered a hold over the initial approach fix BALES at 4,000 ft. Just as the aircraft was turning outbound on the hold, ATC cleared the pilots for the approach and to descend to 2,600 ft. The plane flew over BALES at 4,000 ft and did not begin descending until 2 nm past BALES. The aircraft then passed the MAP at 2,600 ft and reached the MDA of 1,400 ft after overflying the airport by 4 nm. 1 minute and 13 seconds later, the plane began climbing and at 12:33 pm radioed to ATC that it was going missed. 9 seconds later, the aircraft disappeared from radar.[5]
The plane was reported missing at 3:00 pm. Eventually9-1-1 was called, and fire trucks and police cars patrolled the Virginia area during the race itself. Around midway through the race, aCivil Air Patrol search team patrolling the nearby Bull Mountain's peak found airplane wreckage on the summit. When removing the wreckage from the summit, response teams found the bodies of the Hendrick group at 11:05 pm. Everyone on board had been killed. A search by firefighters also discovered a scar on the mountain of moved dirt; the discovery proved that the airplane crashed on the side of the mountain and the explosion blew the wreckage and group upward.
NASCAR received word of the plane crash halfway through the race atMartinsville.Jimmie Johnson, a Hendrick driver, won the race. Due to the circumstances, the usual victory lane celebration did not take place. Upon the conclusion of the race, NASCAR called all Hendrick personnel to its mobile operations trailer where details of the accident were disclosed to the team.[6]
An investigation conducted by theNational Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) followed soon after the crash.
There were foggy conditions at the time of the plane crash.[7]
The NTSB suggested that pilot error was the cause of the crash, partly by:
The NTSB concluded its investigation by suggesting that the pilots failed to execute aninstrument approach procedure and that both failed to use all navigational aids to confirm the airplane's position during its approach.[10]
On February 18, 2005, Marshall Carlson,Rick Hendrick's son-in-law, signed on as new general manager.[11]
The week following the crash, officials at theAtlanta Motor Speedway held a moment of silence before both theBusch andNextel Cup races and lowered the flags tohalf staff. All the Hendrick Motorsports cars, as well as the No. 0 driven byWard Burton of Hendrick-affiliatedHaas CNC Racing, carried tributes on the hoods for those who were lost the week before. Jimmie Johnson (who won theBass Pro Shops MBNA 500 race) and the rest of his teammates and crew wore their caps backwards in victory lane as a tribute to Ricky Hendrick, who had a habit of doing the same.[12] Teams who win in Hendrick Motorsports cars continue the tradition to honor Ricky after every race win. At the Hendrick museum inConcord, North Carolina, 300 people showed up for a candlelight vigil in honor of the ten victims.[13]
The Randy Dorton Trophy now goes to the winner of the Mahle Engine Builders Challenge.[14][15]
36°42′22″N80°11′32″W / 36.70611°N 80.19222°W /36.70611; -80.19222