NTSB faults pilot in 2014 crash that killed 3 Triangle men
The NTSB determined Tuesday what caused a jet crash that killed 3 men from the Triangle in December 2014.
Dr. Michael Rosenberg, the CEO and founder of Durham-based Health Decisions, was piloting the corporate jet which took off from Chapel Hill. The plane spent 57 minutes in the air.
The NTSB said Rosenberg failed to turn on crucial de-icing equipment which led to an ice accumulation on the wings, despite one of the passengers noting it was snowing outside, according to the cockpit vice and data recorder.
By not taking possible icing into consideration, the NTSB said Rosenberg set approach and landing speeds too slow for the conditions, which lead to an aerodynamic stall.
The airplane crashed less than a mile from the runway in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Investigators said they also found evidence the pilot skipped certain checklist items and procedures before takeoff.
The other two people on the plane were David Hartman, 52, a vice-president at Nuventra Pharma Sciences in Durham, and 31-year old Chijioke Ogbuka. He worked for Rosenberg at Health Decisions as a project manager, and lived at an apartment complex in Brier Creek.
