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The aircraft took off from Smyrna Airport in Smyrna, Tennessee, at 10:53 a.m. for a planned Federal Aviation Regulations Part 91 personal flight to Palm Beach International Airport.[1] After takeoff, the aircraft started a right turn and climbed to an altitude of 2,900ft (880m) before descending to 1,800ft (550m), climbing again to 3,000ft (910m), and then descending into the lake, two minutes and one second after departure.[4]
Witnesses on the lake reported that the aircraft impacted the water near the Fate Sanders Recreation Area. Authorities secured a debris field, and an oil sheen was observed at the site.
At an evening press conference on May 29, Captain Joshua Sanders of the Rutherford County Fire Department stated that, after search operations on the lake since 11:00 a.m., the response had shifted from rescue to recovery.
Dive teams from Rutherford County Fire & Rescue, the Metro Nashville Office of Emergency Management, the Metro Nashville Police Department, and the Wilson County Emergency Management Agency recovered several components of the aircraft and human remains.
In addition to water-based operations, authorities operated drones to search for debris that might have drifted from the crash site.
Drone operations continued over the debris field, and air traffic was restricted within a 1-nautical-mile (1.9 km) radius of the site up to 500 ft altitude.
Retired FAA inspector Larry Williams stated that the event occurred too quickly for the pilot to issue a distress call.
Weather conditions
Weather reports indicated the presence of an overcast cloud layer at 1,300ft (400m) in the area at the time.[4]
The Victims
Seven occupants were killed, including actor Joe Lara, his wife, and her son-in-law. Authorities later released the identities of all victims.
Gwen Lara (Lara's wife)
Brandon Hannah (Lara's son-in-law)
Jennifer J.
Martin David L. Martin
Jessica Walters
Jonathan Walters
Gwen Shamblin Lara founded the Weigh Down Workshop, a Christian-oriented weight-loss program, and later established Remnant Fellowship Church. According to a biography published by Remnant Fellowship Church, Weigh Down became “the world’s number one weight-loss seminar.”
The aircraft was owned by Remnant Fellowship Church.
All seven were local residents and members of Remnant Fellowship Church.
Lara had portrayed Tarzan in the television series Tarzan: The Epic Adventures and in the 1989 television film Tarzan in Manhattan.
His other screen credits included Steel Frontier, Sunset Heat, Gunsmoke: The Last Apache, American Cyborg: Steel Warrior, The Magnificent Seven, Baywatch, and Tropical Heat, among others. In total, he had 28 acting credits.[5][6][7][8]
Rescue efforts
U.S. authorities examined the crash site while conducting search-and-rescue operations. They requested that the public avoid the area and sought civilian assistance.
Firefighters and other rescue teams were deployed to the scene. After an overnight operation, authorities reported that all occupants were deceased and that next of kin had been notified.
Captain Joshua Sanders stated that crews had ended search-and-rescue operations and were conducting recovery operations at the crash site.
He stated that divers planned to resume search operations on the morning of May 30, 2021.[9][10]
By June 1, 2021, search teams had recovered both engines, substantial sections of the fuselage, and additional human remains. Authorities had identified the seven victims, but at the time, it remained unclear who was flying the aircraft when it crashed.[11]
Aircraft
The aircraft involved, owned by JL&GL Productions LP, was a Cessna 501 Citation I (serial number 501-0254), registered as N66BK. It was equipped with two Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-1B turbofan engines. When the aircraft was last inspected, it had accumulated 4781.4 hours. The aircraft was manufactured in 1982, and had its maiden flight the same year.[4][12]
Investigation
By 1 June 2021, searchers had recovered both aircraft engines, a significant portion of the fuselage, and unidentified human remains. Authorities had named the seven victims, all of whom were leaders at the Remnant Fellowship Church.
On 22 March 2023, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the cause of the accident was "the pilot's loss of airplane control during climb due to spatial disorientation." Flight tracking data revealed that after takeoff, the aircraft entered clouds at 1,300 ft (400m) and made a series of heading changes, along with several climbs and descents, before it entered a steep, descending left turn. Accelerations associated with the airplane’s increasing airspeed were likely perceived by the pilot as the airplane pitching up although it was in a continuous descent. This occurred because Lara was experiencing a type of spatial disorientation, a somatogravic illusion, and he probably did not effectively use his instruments during takeoff and climb. As a result, Lara most likely experienced a high workload managing the flight profile, which would have had a negative effect on his performance. As such, the airplane entered a high acceleration, unusual attitude, descending left turn from which he was not able to recover.
The NTSB investigation reviewed Lara's pilot training in the CE-500-type aircraft and reported that at the end of a 12-day series of training sessions at a flight school in January 2020, "the pilot did not meet the requisite performance level to attempt the CE-500 type rating check ride." Lara returned to his local instructor for more training and subsequently passed his check ride. Nonetheless, a pilot who flew in the accident aircraft with the accident pilot on several occasions judged him to be "weak" when flying in instrument meteorological conditions.[13]
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