By Bill Kight

March 2003 was a bad month for the Leesburg, Va., airport. In a 20-day period, two highly capable single-engine aircraft, one nearly new, crashed on the same instrument approach to the airport— the Localizer 17. Both airplanes ended up in the back yard of private residences, raising questions – perhaps rightfully so – among the local populace and some politicians about the safety of those living near the airport.

The NTSB reports on these accidents are still preliminary in nature, but the information contained in them points to questionable aircraft control on the approaches that may have led their pilots to lose control at low altitude and low speed.…