Harmon Rocket II, down in California

[Lux Wrangler]

Small Plane Crashes Into Bakersfield Vineyard
(AP) ARVIN, California A small plane nose-dived into a vineyard near several homes Saturday morning, leaving one person dead in a mangled pile of wreckage, authorities said.

Several witnesses at a nearby soccer game saw the single-engine plane fly straight into the ground around 9:30 a.m., said Battalion Chief Vernell Brothers of the Kern County Fire Department.

The plane crashed about 200 feet north of several homes with residents inside, Brothers said.

The unidentified victim, who appeared to be the only one on board, was dead at the scene about 23 miles southeast of Bakersfield. The plane was so badly damaged that the wreck left little more than scattered pieces of metal and a hole in the ground.

"It was completely destroyed," Brothers said.

Federal investigators identified the plane as a Harmon Rocket II, an experimental home-built aircraft, that was registered in Bakersfield. Investigators were still working to determine the cause of the crash and from where the plane took off.

[mark manda]

I drove in the airport yesterday and thought about asking the pilot of that plane for a ride.

They(Bakersfield Bunch) had left Bakersfield Muni for a breakfast flight to Mojave and Jess never showed up.

Speculation is he hit mod. to severe turbulence and knocked himself out on the rollbar or rollbar handles.

Terrible, I really liked that guy.

side note-- he was telling another pilot that he liked flying his RV-3 more than the HR-2. More nimble, didn't suck as much gas, he only arrived 5 mins behind them.