Hendrick Plane Crash: NASCAR Owner Rick Hendrick In Private Plane Crash In Key West

KEY WEST, Fla. — A small jet carrying the owner of NASCAR's top team and his wife lost its brakes and crash landed at a Key West, Fla., airport Monday evening, and the couple suffered minor injuries, officials said.

The Gulfstream 150 aircraft ran off the runway at the Key West International Airport Monday at 7:45 p.m. Rick and Linda Hendrick, a pilot and co-pilot were all taken to Lower Keys Medical Centers. The Hendricks had minor injuries and the pilot and co-pilot were taken in as a precaution, said county airport director Peter Horton.

The plane is registered to Jimmie Johnson Racing II Incorporated in Charlotte, N.C. Johnson is a five-time defending NASCAR champion and drives for Hendrick Motorsports, which Rick Hendrick owns.

Besides Johnson, Hendrick also fields cars for four-time champion Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin. The team recently celebrated its 199th career victory in the Sprint Cup Series.

"It was a real big scare. Very frightening to hear," Earnhardt told reporters in Las Vegas, where he was attending the annual SEMA show, which showcases automotive specialty-equipment. "I'm very glad that he and everybody appears to be OK."

In 2004, a plane Hendrick owned crashed en route to a race in Martinsville, Va., killing all 10 onboard. That included Hendrick's son, Ricky, his brother and twin nieces.

According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, the pilot and co-pilot radioed that the plane had no brakes upon landing in Key West. Horton said the plane ran off the runway, and then 100 feet beyond a 600-foot safety area that was finished in May.

"If we hadn't done that, it likely would have been a different story," Horton said of the safety area that is meant as a runway overrun space.

Photographs of the crash show the plane largely intact and with its nose resting on the ground about 20 feet in front of a chain-linked airport boundary fence.

The National Transportation and Safety Board will investigate the cause of the crash.

Comments

[Tater Salad]

11:12 AM on 11/02/2011

Note to the Hendrick family- STAY OUT OF PLANES!

[kholesweety]

11:16 PM on 11/01/2011

NASCAR Owner Rick Hendrick and his Wife Linda Plane Crash Video and Photos Here:

http://ow.ly/7g9yO

[SpreadthePanic]

09:44 AM on 11/01/2011

It is unfortunate the frequency with which those associated with motor sports are involved in aircraft accidents (both Hendrick crashes, Davey Allison, Alan Kulwiki, Jack Roush, Tony Lee Bettenhausen Jr., etc.). However, I don't think that this is the result of luxury, as many posters are quick to point out.

Racing involves a lot of travel, and because of this flying is often a necessity. Many drivers will get pilots licenses for either helicopters or airplanes so they can get from track to track and other team facilities. Many athletes and entertainers will have multiple engagements in different cities in a short time-span, requiring air travel - and that is why these types of accidents happen so frequently. In this case, Hendrick was just in Virginia and will soon need to be in Texas. So you can bemoan his wealth, but really if you had to travel as frequently as he does you would not consider using a private plane a luxury.

[Bigrcube]

09:09 AM on 11/01/2011

Were they ALL wearing their Hans Device?

[tanya11111]

08:31 AM on 11/01/2011

the pitfalls of the very wealthy!

[Kalik]

08:52 AM on 11/01/2011

Should we even discuss the hundreds of airline disasters that claimed the lives of many ordinary citizens...or you just going to stay in that cave and gain weight!

[tanya11111]

09:03 AM on 11/01/2011

what are you even talking about? All I am saying is that regular people never have to say "honey we crashed the plane".... do you even realize how many more commercial flights there are than private? Private jets have a much higher percentage of fatal crashes than commercial. I actually fly planes... so maybe you should get out of your cave more often.... you might come up with wittier put downs...

[cookerman45]

09:33 AM on 11/01/2011

says Kalik from his mommas basement.

[GrumpyOldGeek]

05:35 AM on 11/01/2011

C'mon, pilots. You landed way too hot.

Key West has one runway, 4,801 feet long.

The G150 has a published landing distance of 2,880 feet.

General aviation aircraft landing distances are generally calculated based on no wind and minimal braking effectiveness, This compensates for landing on a slick wet runway. In effect, the distance is for no brakes, full reverse thrusters, extended slats, full flaps, and gear down and locked. Full gross weight is usually assumed, too. Less weight shortens the landing distance.

So the pilots had an extra 2,000 feet or more (depending on fuel, temperature, humidity, and weight) than the normal landing distance and they still ran off the end of the runway.

The airplane wasn't properly configured for a safe landing, imo. Too fast and/or too steep, It's they radioed the tower and claimed that the brakes failed at the moment they realized they didn't have enough runway to go around. Or they didn't recognize or react to the situation quickly. Once they used up the runway needed to go around, they were committed. If they tried to go around and changed their minds, then that's pilot error. I doubt if this happened.

The NTSB will sort it out.

It's an awesome airplane.

Too bad this one has some scratches in the paint job now.

A scary landing, for sure. They almost got it slowed down enough.

[SunnyDaySam]

09:35 AM on 11/01/2011

It will be interesting to read the NTSB report. I'm thinking you nailed it. I don't know much about the big iron; does the G150 have a flight data recorder? If so, that would tell the whole story.

[GrumpyOldGeek]

06:47 PM on 11/01/2011

It's an option. Probably not.

[sqdr12]

01:33 PM on 11/01/2011

From the article: "According to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, the pilot and co-pilot radioed that the plane had no brakes upon landing in Key West."

The key words, "upon landing". Sounds like all was OK until they hit the runway. No brakes, no stop.

[GrumpyOldGeek]

07:49 PM on 11/01/2011

Of course you wouldn't notice that the brakes weren't effective until the tires are on a surface. It's appropriate to announce that problem to the tower.

What you probably don't realize is that the 2,880 foot normal landing distance is without the use of brakes. There's plenty of aerodynamic drag and reverse thrust power to stop the G150 in that distance. The landing distance is calculated to be the speed at which the airplane is able to safely make a turn onto a taxiway and exit the runway.

There are many reasons why they measure it this way. Airplane tires have no cross treads. When wet, they frequently hydroplane. Another problem is ice that can accumulate when descending through moisture when approching the airport. The disk brakes get coated with ice. Icing conditions are frequent in the autumn. Yes, even in Key West. A few thousand feet above the ground is enough, especially around dusk.

Another less frequent problem is a hydraulic leak that results in loss of fluid at high altitudes. The G150 has sensors and indicators, though.

The Gulfstream is designed for use on smaller airports. I've personally watched a G100 land at my home airport that has only a 3,100 foot runway. The pilot had plenty of room to land and for a departure takeoff.

The "no brakes, no stop" generally doesn't apply to small and medium aircraft technical specs.

[flashfyre]

05:31 AM on 11/01/2011

That'll buff right out. Glad there were no serious injuries.

[houston we have aproblem]

09:21 AM on 11/01/2011

scrap

[bridgeman]

05:17 AM on 11/01/2011

Now they are crashing in planes?

tough business

[BerkeleyHills]

04:28 AM on 11/01/2011

Yipes! Did they touch down and loose brakes during braking or did the pilots just call "No brakes" on touchdown? Sweet little airport but at night you can drift a little far down the runway and might need to stand on those puppies. (Lighting is kind of crappy.) And that's really not that small of a jet aircraft.

[Jon Benedict]

03:44 AM on 11/01/2011

MikeDu (oofus), why did you read, then make that comment? I thought about 'corporate jet' too, though I had the discretion not to, it was life threatening! I feel he would love the luxury of TIME, not with his responsibilities to his businesses and workforce that depend on him! So, he must fly...

BTW, private by means of signing a contract does not make a cargo jet a personal trip! GET REAL!

It should have been British, just as if it was I, it would be US American...

[blueyesinbhead]

03:26 AM on 11/01/2011

They shoulda turned left....then left again.....the left again until they stopped.

[TXfemmom]

02:01 AM on 11/01/2011

I am so happy there were not serious injuries or loss of life.

[MikeDu]

01:38 AM on 11/01/2011

Us 'little' people are buying hybrids and lowering our thermostats in an effort to reduce fuel consumption. The 1 percenters play with toys that measure their fuel capacities in *thousands of pounds*. I recall a story a few years ago about a certain *Beatle* who had a hybrid car specially built fo him in Japan then flew it to his home via private international cargo jet. Apparently the guy wasn't too clear about the concept of reducing fuel consumption.

[GrumpyOldGeek]

05:51 AM on 11/01/2011

This unemployed 99%er owns an airplane. My business (if I had any) depends on direct and prompt travel. Most of my customers are located on or near small airports.

My car is 19 years old.

My airplane and my house are my main assets. I could lose my house to foreclosure after my meager retirement savings are gone (ten years too soon and half lost in the economic meltdown. I own the airplane, but won't be able to afford the required maintenance and inspections. If things don't turn around soon, I'll be forced to sell the airplane for about half of what I should be able to get for it.

So life is difficult. I'm not alone, for sure.

But it isn't the 1% who have airplanes. In fact, there's only one business on town that owns a business jet. Their business absolutely requires a jet. They have been forced to sell their larger airplane and replace it with a much older and slower model. And they fly fewer trips carrying fewer people. They are food distributors. And we know that food sales and volumes don't go down as much as other businesses when the economy goes sour.

We need jobs. We need stimulus. And we need to get rid of every single Republican in Congress and our state legislatures.

Saying no to everything is killing people. I want them out of our way. And some of the investment bankers in prison.

[SunnyDaySam]

09:30 AM on 11/01/2011

Nice post, GOG. Thanks for standing up for GA too. Totally agree with your last two lines. Big F&F

[ekg]

08:30 AM on 11/01/2011

Youresuchafuckingmoron Mr. Du(fus).

I'm sure the world would be great if you were allowed to tell other people what to do.....

[Dawg1000]

01:29 AM on 11/01/2011

Good to hear they are all OK...

[SunnyDaySam]

09:31 AM on 11/01/2011

It's that old adage, 'any landing you can walk away from is a good one." ;-]