Pilot error likely caused Nashville plane crash that killed Ontario family, NTSB says

Travis Loller · The Associated Press

· Posted: Mar 11, 2025 4:00 PM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

A fiery tiny level clang successful Tennessee past twelvemonth that killed a Canadian household of 5 was astir apt the effect of an mistake by the father who was piloting the plane, according to a National Transportation Safety Board study released this week.

A yearlong probe of the March 4, 2024, clang recovered nary mechanical problems with the plane, though the substance selector was betwixt the "off" presumption and the near main vessel position.

"This mounting would starve the motor of substance and was apt the effect of the aviator changing the substance selector grip successful mentation for landing," according to the report.

The Piper PA-32RT single-engine level crashed wrong Nashville metropolis limits alongside Interstate 40, frightening passing motorists. It burst into flames successful writer conscionable disconnected the road and down a Costco connected the city's westbound side, astir 4.8 kilometers south of Nashville's John C Tune Airport.

Victor Dotsenko, 43, was the pilot. The passengers were his wife, Rimma, 39, and their 3 children, David, 12, Adam, 10, and Emma, 7. The household was from King Township, Ont., astir 50 kilometres northbound of Toronto.

Dotsenkos described arsenic a 'wonderful family'

A neighbour of the Dotsenkos described them arsenic "a fantastic family," according to a study by The Canadian Press successful March 2024.

Alina Pinsky, co-director of the UMCA Rich Tree Academy, a backstage schoolhouse northbound of Toronto, said the household was portion of the schoolhouse assemblage for galore years.

David, Adam and Emma were "the sweetest kids you'll ever meet," Pinksky had said successful a telephone interview.

"These were the astir bright, energy-filled kids — everyone successful the schoolhouse loved them, they had truthful galore friends," Pinsky said. "This was a very, precise loved trio successful our school."

Victor Dotsenko was a subordinate of the Brampton Flying Club, said the club's wide manager, Allan Paige. He did his grooming astatine the nine and obtained his backstage aviator licence successful November 2022. He continued to alert with the nine until helium bought his level successful the mediate of past year, Paige said.

Their formation originated successful Ontario and made stops successful Pennsylvania and Kentucky to refuel earlier attempting to onshore astatine the wide aviation airdrome astir 7:40 p.m. Dotsenko had contacted aerial postulation controllers and was lined up with the runway, but for chartless reasons helium failed to descend for landing. He requested to ellipse astir and attack the runway again.

When a controller asked Dotsenko if helium inactive had the airdrome successful sight, helium said his motor had unopen down. The controller asked again if helium was trying to land.

"I'm going to beryllium landing, I don't cognize where," Dotsenko said.

A controller told him they were clearing a runway and urged him to effort to glide in.

But Dotsenko said successful his past transmission, "I'm excessively acold away. I'm not going to marque it."

An investigation of residential audio and video recordings "revealed that the motor was operating astatine astir afloat continuous powerfulness of astir 2,650 rpm earlier the motor dependable became abnormal, and the audio contained respective 'popping' noises earlier the dependable of motor sound ended," according to the report.

Many witnesses called 911, immoderate of them inactive successful daze and disbelief astatine what they had seen, according to audio of the calls obtained done a nationalist records request.