2 dead after small plane crashes in Nara mountainous area

Time to ban all small aircraft from flying over mountainous areas.

I've been organizing and leading walking tours in the mountains of Nara and points south and east in the Kii Peninsula for Hike Japan and Quest Japan for nearly 15 years. I've seen very few private light aircraft in the skies. Lots of crows and kites!

Most unfortunate.

Since1981; ...and close all airports to General Aviation to keep this sort of thing from happening.

Very Unfortunate the plane crashed and pilot-husband and his wife died.

But crashes do happen. I have friends who are pilots and they understand the risks of flying. They do a thorough pre-flight of the aircraft, check weather conditions and file detailed flight plans. While flying, always monitoring flight instruments, looking out the windows, cognizant of environment, etc. Piloting is a very busy activity. Can't be distracted.

NOT saying or implying the pilot didn't do his due diligence, but many private pilots do seem to be casual about such things.

I looked up what kind an aircraft the Socata TBM 700 is. Very impressive high-performance single engine 7-seat business-class aircraft. Also, demanding aircraft to fly, as most high performance aircrafts are. Can easily get in over your head if not an experienced pilot. I recall John F. Kennedy Jr. flying an aircraft he shouldn't have flown, for the same reason.

Doubt this was case.

Other news articles confirmed the plane was in flames when it impacted. So it had to be a fuel or mechanical-related issue. Hard to say without investigation what happened. When any malfunctions happens and things go south and out of hand, the priority is to find a safe landing place away from population or homes or buildings.

Much credit to Mr. Tanaka for avoiding the houses, which is not an easy thing to do when you have your hands full and trying to maintain control to make a controlled landing. Also tells me he is a proficient pilot. It's just unfortunate he and his wife didn't survive.

Comments like "time to ban all airplanes and close all airports" just goes to show how intolerant, as a society, we have become, especially where accidents and fatalities are concerned. There is no such thing as a zero risk or accident-free environment. There are always going to be accidents and fatalities. To demand 100% accident-free or ZERO risk is just plain unrealistic and unreasonable.

If you are that afraid of accidents, may as well spend 24/7/365 wearing a bubble-wrap suit and living in an underground fortified shelter at a secluded uninhabited region.

Why do pilots need to radio in? Or need ATC? I can't recall the last time I radioed Ground Traffic Control that I was departing my house to Tachikawa via car. Flying is just 3d driving, IMHO. Gonna have accidents. With helicopters the fatalities can be reduced as the rotor is decoupled if engine dies

Why do pilots need to radio in? Or need ATC? I can't recall the last time I radioed Ground Traffic Control that I was departing my house to Tachikawa via car. Flying is just 3d driving, IMHO. Gonna have accidents. With helicopters the fatalities can be reduced as the rotor is decoupled if engine dies

Why do pilots need to radio in and why ATC? It's routine practice and regulation to let ATC know where you are and where you are in relation to your flight plan. Of course GPS and transponders can do the same but can't broadcast the nature of the problem. When you have trouble on approach, you need to radio in to let them know you'll need a crash crew on hand, especially if the plane is on fire, have a stuck landing gear, etc. Also, if you are too far from the departing airport and too far from your destination, and experiencing malfunctions, ATC can divert you to the nearest airport.

If I were driving a long distance cross-country trip, I'd periodically check in with my friend or family to let them know where I am just in case. If I'm way overdue, they'll have a general idea where I was last.

Airplanes are not the same as helicopters and fly in a very different manner. True, the helicopter main rotor autorotates freely when engine fails and the helicopter can descend like a parachute, but fixed wing aircraft depends on its wing, wing lift and forward thrust from the propeller (or jet engine) to maintain altitude. When the engine loses power or quits and propeller no longer provides forward thrust, forward speed diminishes. As forward speed diminishes, so does wing lift. At that point you're gliding and losing altitude quickly, unless you can find a thermal lift to help maintain altitude and extend the glide path. But most powered planes don't have the glide ratio of gliders and can't glide as far.

Hope this puts things in perspective.