The pilot of the plane that crashed in Chesterfield County last month had difficulty controlling the aircraft after takeoff and made frequent altitude and directional changes before plunging to the ground and into a house, according to a federal investigation.

At least one witness reported seeing a large piece of the Mooney M20M fall to the ground, which appears to correspond with a fiberglass lower fuselage fairing found about 600 feet from the crash site, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a preliminary report released yesterday.

Although the report on the April 27 crash indicates a loss of control and an erratic flight path by pilot Joseph Anthony Grana Jr., it doesn't specify what caused the loss of control. That remains under investigation.

Grana and his father, Joseph Anthony Grana Sr., 73, of Richmond, died on impact. Melissa M. Bowen, 22, who was staying with her sister in the house the plane hit, was seriously burned when the aircraft slid into the home and burst into flames. She is recovering at VCU Medical Center.

Grana, 40, of Florham Park, N.J., was flying with instruments because of inclement weather and cloud cover.

The report says a witness at Chesterfield County Airport said the plane remained on the ramp with the engine running for about 15 minutes, then taxied to the end of Runway 33, where it remained for an additional 15 minutes with the engine running.

The engine sounded normal during takeoff, the witness reported.

But shortly after takeoff, it appears the pilot had difficulty controlling the plane. The report says radar records indicate Grana made several turns to the left and right after ascending in a northwesterly direction for about one minute and climbing to 1,100 feet.

The plane flew over U.S. 360, turned to the left and traveled in a south-southwesterly direction and climbed to 1,400 feet. The plane then turned to the right, first flying west at 1,800 feet, then turned to the left, the report says.

The plane then turned to the right again and descended. It was at 600 feet near Dumaine Drive and Tevis Lane when it was lost on radar.

The witness who saw a large piece of the aircraft fall to the ground said he also heard the engine sound decrease and noticed the propeller turning slowly. Several other witnesses reporting seeing the plane descend in a 45-degree nose dive.

The aircraft hit the ground before sliding into the house in the 3100 block of Woodsong Drive, about 400 feet south-southeast from the last radar reading and about 3¾ nautical miles from where it took off, the report says.

Grana had flown from his home in New Jersey to attend a family function in the Richmond area the weekend of the crash. He and his father, also a pilot, were headed to Franklin Municipal Airport in southeastern Virginia to practice landings and takeoffs.

The NTSB's final report on the crash won't be issued for about a year, an agency spokesman said.
Contact Mark Bowes at (804) 649-6450 or mbowes@timesdispatch.com.