Today's Article - 2008 South Carolina Learjet 60 crash


This article is for quizzes on Monday June 27th...

The 2008 South Carolina Learjet 60 crash occurred just before midnight on September 19, 2008, when a Learjet 60 (registration N999LJ) crashed while taking off from Columbia Metropolitan Airport in South Carolina. The weather at the time was cool, dry, and clear. The plane hit runway lights and crashed through the boundary fence, crossing South Carolina Highway 302 (SC 302/Edmund Highway/Airport Boulevard), and coming to rest on an embankment by the side of the highway. No one on the ground was hurt, but four of the six people on the plane (including both pilots) died in the crash, while the other two, Travis Barker (the drummer for Blink-182) and Adam Goldstein, suffered severe burns. The plane was a charter flight taken by Barker, Goldstein and their entourage following a performance by their musical group TRV$DJAM at a free concert in Five Points earlier that night to Van Nuys, California.
The crash site was left intact until the NTSB could perform its initial survey. As a result, runway 11/29 of the Columbia Metropolitan Airport was closed until the morning of September 21. Because the other airport runway, runway 5/23 was also closed for resurfacing, the airport was closed to service. Smaller aircraft were diverted to Columbia Owens Downtown Airport, while scheduled airline service was canceled for the 20th, affecting approximately 400 passengers.

In addition to the impact to the airport, because of time needed to repair fire damage and perform cleanup, the stretch of SC 302 where the plane came to rest was closed until 6 a.m. on September 25.

The plane did not carry a flight data recorder, but during the investigation, the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) was found. In the recording, the pilot indicates she is reacting to the sound of an apparent tire blow-out and attempting a rejected takeoff. Pieces of a tire were found at the crash site.

Both surviving passengers, as well as the estates of the two deceased, filed lawsuits claiming damages from various parties including Learjet, tire manufacturer Goodyear, and, in at least one case (Goldstein's), against the estates of the dead pilots.

Goldstein died in his New York City apartment on August 28, 2009 of a drug overdose, a combination of cocaine and prescription drugs given to him for aftereffects of the plane crash.

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