A preliminary report on the fatal crash of a College of the Ozarks plane that killed six in December 1999 has put a peculiar twist to the story. The National Transportation Safety Board indicates pilot stress might have contributed to the crash. It has disclosed the Federal Aviation Administration had been investigating pilot Joe Brinell for alleged plane maintenance violations at the college airport. It further disclosed the FAA later found the charges groundless. After the crash, Brinell’s wife told investigators that her husband had been under stress caused by pressure from the FAA. A friend of Brinell said he’d confided he hadn’t slept in three days because of the stress.
