Latest news with #Renslow
Daily Record
21-07-2025
- General
- Daily Record
Pilot's chilling premonition minutes before horror crash killed all board
All 49 people on board the Colgan Air Flight 3407 perished, as did one person on the ground, after the plane crashed into a house on February 12, 2009 in Buffalo, New York When Colgan Air Flight 3407 departed from Newark, New Jersey bound for Buffalo, New York, the 49 passengers on board were oblivious to the tragic fate that awaited them. On 12 February 2009, the Colgan Air aircraft went into an aerodynamic stall and crashed into a house, resulting in the death of all 49 individuals on board and one person on the ground. A cockpit voice recorder transcript released by the National Transportation Safety Board reveals the chilling final words of Captain Marvin Renslow, followed by a scream from his co-pilot, First Officer Rebecca Shaw, recorded just seconds before the fatal crash. In the moments leading up to the catastrophic accident, as they neared Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Renslow and Shaw can be heard discussing the First Officer's career and expressing their concerns about flying in icy weather conditions. Shortly thereafter, the twin-engine turboprop Dash 8-Q400 Bombardier experienced an aerodynamic stall and plummeted into a house, causing devastating destruction and loss of life, reports the Express. In the cockpit transcript made public by the Safety Board, Renslow and Shaw are first heard discussing the amount of ice accumulating on their wings. This conversation took place less than seven minutes prior to the crash, as their plane descended from 6,000 to 4,000 feet while approaching Buffalo on a frosty night. Shaw observed, "it's lots of ice," prompting Renslow to respond, "Oh yeah that's the most I've seen, most ice I've seen on the leading edges in a long time, in a while anyway I should say." Renslow then mentioned he'd clocked up roughly 625 hours flying in the area prior to joining Colgan Air. Shaw replied: "I really wouldn't mind going through a winter in the Northeast before I have to upgrade to captain. I've never seen icing conditions. I've never de-iced. I've never seen any. I've never experienced any of that. I don't want to have to experience that and make those kinds of calls. You know I would've freaked out. I would've like seen this much ice and thought, 'Oh my gosh, we were going to crash.'". Addressing Shaw's concerns, Renslow responded: "I would've been fine. I would have survived it. There wasn't, we never had to make decisions that I wouldn't have been able to make but.. now I'm more comfortable." As the crew deploys the undercarriage and modifies the flaps, a noise resembling the flap handle's operation is captured at precisely 10:16.26 pm, with Shaw audibly uttering, "Uhhh." Within a fraction of a second, the cockpit records sounds matching the stick shaker - an alert delivered via the control stick indicating the aircraft is nearing an aerodynamic stall. The warning persisted for a duration of 6.7 seconds, and was soon followed by the distinct sound of a horn, signalling that the autopilot had been disconnected. This tone carried on without interruption for the rest of the cockpit recording. Approximately three seconds after the stick shaker was activated, a clicking noise was heard, along with a noticeable increase in engine power. At precisely 10:16.34. 8 pm, Captain Renslow's voice is captured as he exclaims, "Jesus Christ." Subsequently, First Officer Shaw communicates that she has retracted the flaps and queries whether to raise the landing gear too, eliciting Renslow's response: "Gear up, oh (expletive)." Amid escalating sounds and commotion within the cockpit, Renslow declares: "We're down." This is followed by a thud, and Shaw utters "we" - her words cut off by a harrowing scream. The transcript concludes at this point, at 10:16.52 pm. Further insights were provided by documents from the Safety Board, which disclosed that a training instructor had described Renslow as initially "was slow learning" the Dash 8 aircraft, but noted an improvement towards the end of his training. The same instructor also mentioned that Renslow had faced challenges in familiarising himself with the flight management system of this specific model and had difficulties adapting to the different control positions, which were contrary to what he had been accustomed to on another type of aircraft. Nevertheless, the instructor spoke highly of Renslow's decision-making capabilities, labelling them as very good. Cogan Air was compelled to admit Renslow's training on the aircraft did not cover simulations or demonstrations of the plane's stick-pusher system. A stick-pusher is designed to automatically activate when an aircraft is on the verge of stalling, pushing the nose down into a dive to gain speed and enable the pilot to safely recover control. However, during Flight 3407's descent towards Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Renslow contravened standard procedure by pulling back on the control column as the stick-pusher activated, in an attempt to lift the nose and halt the dive. The correct response would have been to push forward to increase speed. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that pilot error and inadequate training were the primary causes of the catastrophic crash. It was determined that the pilots had responded "inappropriately" to stall warnings, leading to disrupted airflow over the wings and a swift drop in altitude. As a result, the pilot lost command of the aircraft, which crashed into a house merely five miles from the end of the runway. This calamity prompted the grieving families of those who perished to take decisive steps, culminating in the introduction of new safety measures in the commercial aviation industry. The legislation enacted in 2010 brought about more stringent crew rest requirements, limitations on duty time, and required airlines to disclose the operator of each flight. Moreover, a database has been set up to guarantee that pilots amass over 1,500 flying hours before they are certified to fly an aircraft.
Daily Mirror
21-07-2025
- General
- Daily Mirror
Pilot's two horrifying final words before plane crash killed all on board
The Colgan Air Flight 3407 crash took the lives of 49 people on board, as well as one person on the ground - now, the pilot's chilling last words have been revealed When Colgan Air Flight 3407 departed from Newark, New Jersey bound for Buffalo, New York, the 49 passengers on board were oblivious to the tragic fate that awaited them. On February 12, 2009, the Colgan Air aircraft entered an aerodynamic stall and plummeted into a house, claiming the lives of all 49 people on board and one individual on the ground. A cockpit voice recorder transcript released by the National Transportation Safety Board reveals Captain Marvin Renslow's haunting final words, followed by a terrified scream from his co-pilot, First Officer Rebecca Shaw, recorded just seconds before the catastrophic crash. In the moments preceding the fatal accident, as they neared Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Renslow and Shaw can be heard discussing the First Officer's career and expressing their apprehension about flying in icy conditions. Shortly after, the twin-engine turboprop Dash 8-Q400 Bombardier experienced an aerodynamic stall and crashed into a house, resulting in devastating destruction and loss of life, reports the Express. In the cockpit transcript provided by the Safety Board, Renslow and Shaw are first heard discussing the amount of ice accumulating on their wings. This conversation occurred less than seven minutes prior to the crash, as their plane descended from 6,000 to 4,000 feet on its approach to Buffalo on a frosty night. Shaw observed, "it's lots of ice," prompting Renslow to respond, "Oh yeah that's the most I've seen, most ice I've seen on the leading edges in a long time, in a while anyway I should say." Renslow then mentioned he'd clocked up roughly 625 hours flying in the area prior to joining Colgan Air. Shaw replied: "I really wouldn't mind going through a winter in the Northeast before I have to upgrade to captain. I've never seen icing conditions. I've never de-iced. I've never seen any. I've never experienced any of that. I don't want to have to experience that and make those kinds of calls. You know I would've freaked out. I would've like seen this much ice and thought, 'Oh my gosh, we were going to crash.'". Renslow then addressed Shaw's concerns: "I would've been fine. I would have survived it. There wasn't, we never had to make decisions that I wouldn't have been able to make but.. now I'm more comfortable." As the crew deployed the landing gear and modified the flaps, a noise similar to the flap handle's movement was captured at precisely 10:16.26 pm, with Shaw audibly saying, "Uhhh." Within a second, the cockpit registered sounds matching the stick shaker - an alert sent through the control stick indicating the aircraft was nearing an aerodynamic stall. The warning persisted for 6.7 seconds before a distinct horn signalled the autopilot's disengagement, with the tone carrying on throughout the cockpit recording. A mere three seconds after the stick shaker was activated, a click and the engines' thrust increasing were audible. At 10:16.34. 8 pm, Captain Renslow is heard exclaiming, "Jesus Christ." Subsequently, First Officer Shaw reports that she has raised the flaps and queries whether to retract the landing gear, to which Renslow urgently replies: "Gear up, oh (expletive)." Amid escalating sounds and noise in the cockpit, Renslow declares: "We're down." This is followed by a thump, and Shaw utters "we" before a harrowing scream cuts through. The transcript concludes at 10:16.52 pm. Safety Board documents also disclosed insights from a training instructor who noted that initially, Renslow "was slow learning" the Dash 8 but later showed improvement. The instructor mentioned Renslow's challenges with the aircraft's flight management system and his adjustment to switch positions, contrasting with his experience on another type of aircraft. Nevertheless, the instructor commended Renslow's decision-making skills as very good. Cogan Air was also compelled to admit that Renslow's aircraft training hadn't covered a simulation or demonstration of the plane's stick-pusher mechanism. A stick-pusher automatically kicks in when an aircraft approaches a stall, pushing the plane's nose downward into a dive so it can gain sufficient speed for the pilot to steer it towards a safe recovery. However, during Flight 3407's descent to Buffalo Niagara International Airport, Renslow defied correct protocol and yanked back on the control column when the stick-pusher activated, allegedly attempting to lift the nose and halt the dive. The proper procedure involves pushing forward to increase speed. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded that pilot error and inadequate training caused the devastating crash. The pilots were found to have responded "inappropriately" to stall alerts, which created turbulent airflow across the wing and a swift loss of height. As a result, the pilot lost command and the aircraft crashed into a house merely five miles from the runway's edge. The disaster prompted grieving families of the casualties to take determined action, leading to the introduction of fresh safety rules in the commercial aviation industry. The 2010 law brought in tougher crew rest demands, duty time restrictions, and required airlines to disclose the operator of each flight. Moreover, a database was set up to guarantee that pilots rack up over 1,500 flying hours before they're deemed qualified to fly an aircraft.
Chicago Tribune
10-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Gary woman's short film to premiere online Wednesday
Fifteen years after she started production, a Gary woman's short film will premiere online Wednesday. 'I was in a very different place in my life (when this started),' said Jessica Renslow, co-creator of 'Method: A Voice Actor Prepares.' 'I'm living in my hometown of Gary, Indiana, still living the dream I had back then, which was to be able to work from home and have kids and still be creative. It's funny how your dreams can play out in ways that you never imagined.' 'Method: A Voice Actor Prepares' is a short comedic film that follows a voice actor who uses method acting to prepare for his roles. The film is a complete satire of life in a recording studio, Renslow said, and she believes people who like anime or manga will especially enjoy it. Renslow called the film a passion project, and she said they finished post-production during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ten cast members and seven crew members worked on the film. 'Method: A Voice Actor Prepares' premiered in film festivals in 2022, but this is the first time it's been released to the general public. Renslow is excited to see how people will respond. 'You can enjoy the film, definitely from just a comedic perspective,' she said. 'But if you specifically like anime or manga, it's going to be really funny.' The film premieres online at 8 p.m. Wednesday, according to its Eventbrite page. The premiere is free, and the first 300 people can participate in a question-and-answer session afterward. Renslow created the film with Lindsey Myers, and the two own Almost Fairytales, an independent production/post-production company based in Gary and Studio City, California. Renslow and Myers met in 2007 while working at a Burbank, California-based studio. Myers is excited to see what people think of the film. Because it's a fun film, she anticipates people will 'get a laugh out of it.' 'It almost felt like it wouldn't happen for a while, even though I knew it would,' Myers said. 'It's exciting to finally get it out into the world, and hopefully other people will like it.' In addition to being co-creator, Myers also helped create two costumes and worked as editor and co-producer. Renslow directed and edited the film, according to its IMDb page. Myers said the lead actor, Ben Diskin, 'is incredible' in the film. Diskin is an Emmy Award winner, and has nearly 30 years of voice acting experience, according to IMDb. 'He's playing a completely heightened, ridiculous version of himself,' Myers said. 'He did such a great job and let us take it so far and be so weird.' Myers is happy they can have an online premiere, especially because Renslow lives in Gary while most of the cast and crew live in Los Angeles. 'It's nice that everybody is able to still get together and celebrate that little passion project and idea that we had 15 years ago,' she said. Renslow and Myers both said this is a great way for the cast and crew to stay in touch. Myers hasn't seen some people in about 10 years. Renslow began working freelance not long after they started working on the film, and she said this was her 'last hurrah' to be on a set. The film premiere gives Renslow an opportunity to better look back at that time. 'It was such a joy, and there was so much camaraderie,' Renslow said. 'A lot of great character actors are voice actors. So, it was a real joy to work with them and have them on camera for a change.'
