Scott Will
Well Known Member
Well today, a gorgeous December day here in Atlanta with temps reaching the lower 70's, I decided to pull the airplane out of the hangar to burn off the rest of the time on my Phase I. As I walked around the airplane I noticed smoke billowing out of the top of my row of t-hangars. Originally thought it came from the car repair place across the road but after checking the other side of the t-hangars - it was definitely smoke. I tried feeling the hangar doors to see which one it was.
I hop back in the car and race around to the other side of the t-hangars where my airplane is sitting on the ramp. About to jump on the radio and call tower to have them call the brigade but someone handed me a cell phone. They already called 911. I explained to the dispatcher exactly where we were on the airport.
Few minutes later Gwinnett county's finest came out in full force. In the mad rush, I accidentally left my car in the t-hangar row somewhat blocking any future moves by a fire truck. Finally remembered my keys were in the plane (which I had safely towed away in a hurry).
After a few minutes they had it under control. A bunch of locks were destroyed to get into the hangars in preparation for a mass airplane move. The fire dept had it under control rather quickly.
It was a Lancair 235 that is no longer. All that remained were the engine and tail. Everything else is a melted glob or just gone. The smell of the smoke initially was electrical but later changed to burnt epoxy.
Thankfully no other airplanes were damaged, except for some smoke/water landing on the exterior of the adjacent hangars. I did see an extension cord and what appeared to be a battery charger. The charger/battery seemed to be located aft of the wing. Dont know if this is a common place on the Lancair.
I'm always paranoid about such things and have been known to drive back to the airport just to make sure everything is unpugged and stored safely.
Just a heads up. Everyone is OK. Thanks to the Gwinnett Fire and Police for doing their job.
After everything was under control, I decided to leave the scene so I fired up and headed southeast. Phase I is over!
I hop back in the car and race around to the other side of the t-hangars where my airplane is sitting on the ramp. About to jump on the radio and call tower to have them call the brigade but someone handed me a cell phone. They already called 911. I explained to the dispatcher exactly where we were on the airport.
Few minutes later Gwinnett county's finest came out in full force. In the mad rush, I accidentally left my car in the t-hangar row somewhat blocking any future moves by a fire truck. Finally remembered my keys were in the plane (which I had safely towed away in a hurry).
After a few minutes they had it under control. A bunch of locks were destroyed to get into the hangars in preparation for a mass airplane move. The fire dept had it under control rather quickly.
It was a Lancair 235 that is no longer. All that remained were the engine and tail. Everything else is a melted glob or just gone. The smell of the smoke initially was electrical but later changed to burnt epoxy.
Thankfully no other airplanes were damaged, except for some smoke/water landing on the exterior of the adjacent hangars. I did see an extension cord and what appeared to be a battery charger. The charger/battery seemed to be located aft of the wing. Dont know if this is a common place on the Lancair.
I'm always paranoid about such things and have been known to drive back to the airport just to make sure everything is unpugged and stored safely.
Just a heads up. Everyone is OK. Thanks to the Gwinnett Fire and Police for doing their job.
After everything was under control, I decided to leave the scene so I fired up and headed southeast. Phase I is over!
