14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Tuesday, August 02, 2011 in Fayetteville, TN
Probable Cause Approval Date: 04/17/2013
Aircraft: RANS S18, registration: NONE
Injuries: 1 Fatal.
NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The pilot was making his inaugural flight in the recently purchased, recently reassembled unregistered experimental airplane. After the pilot's initial takeoff from his home airstrip, witnesses saw the airplane turn back toward the runway then lost sight of it behind a tree line. They continued to hear the airplane's engine operate until hearing the airplane impact the ground. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no preexisting mechanical anomalies, and structural damage indicated that it had impacted the ground in a stall/spin to the right. The pilot had not flown in about 6 years, and when a family member suggested that he get some refresher flight training before his first flight in the airplane, the pilot declined to do so.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of recent flight experience.
HISTORY OF FLIGHT
On August 2, 2011, about 1110 central daylight time, an unregistered experimental Rans S18 light sport airplane was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain near a private turf airstrip in Fayetteville, Tennessee. The certificated private pilot was fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which was operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.
Family members stated that the accident flight was the pilot's first flight in the airplane, but that he had taxied it on the grass airstrip several times in order to familiarize himself with the flight controls.
Two witnesses, located approximately 1/4 mile north of the north-south airstrip, stated that they heard an airplane that "sounded like a crop duster." They then observed the airplane airborne behind trees at the departure [northern] end of the runway, and stated that it appeared to bank sharply to the left, back towards the runway. They lost sight of the airplane, and afterwords, heard the sound of an impact. They also stated that the airplane's engine was running "loudly" until the sound of impact.
PILOT INFORMATION
The pilot, age 70, held a private pilot certificate. According to the pilot's logbook, his last recorded flight was on August 14, 2005. A family member stated that the pilot's wife had urged him to get some flight instruction prior to flying the airplane by himself, since it had been some time since he had flown; however, the pilot declined to do so. The pilot's latest medical certificate was issued on June 6, 2005, and at the time, he indicated 640 hours of flight time.
AIRPLANE INFORMATION
The two-seat airplane was powered by a Rotax 503 engine. According supporting documentation, the airplane was purchased during an on-line auction on July 12, 2011, and a bill of sale was signed for it on July 14, 2011. After transport, the airplane was reassembled on the pilot's property. No maintenance logbooks were located; however, the advertisement for sale stated that it had approximately 200 hours of total airframe and engine time, that it had always been hangared, and that it had previously flown under an "ultralight instructor exemption."
METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION
The nearest recorded weather was at an airport about 12 nautical miles south of the accident site, about 5 minutes after the accident, and included clear skies and calm wind.
AIRSTRIP INFORMATION
The turf airstrip was mowed into a larger field, and partly indiscernible from its surroundings, oriented about 010/190 degrees magnetic, approximately 1,400 feet long and 50 feet wide.
WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION
The airplane came to rest inverted approximately 300 feet east of the airstrip near its southern end, in the vicinity of 35 degrees, 6.29 minutes north latitude, 086 degrees, 32.58 minutes west longitude. Two ground scars were located underneath the wreckage, each measuring about 1 foot in length, and oriented toward 080 degrees magnetic.
The nose and cockpit area exhibited significant fore-to-aft crush damage, and when the airplane was righted, the nose was observed bent upwards about 80 degrees.
The left and right wings, vertical stabilizer, horizontal stabilizer, flaps, ailerons, and elevators remained attached to the airframe. Continuity was confirmed from all flight control surfaces to the cockpit area.
The wooden propeller remained attached to the engine, although one blade was fracture-separated opposite the direction of rotation about one-quarter of its length from the hub. The leading edge of the separated portion of the blade exhibited gouging and chordwise scratching. The propeller rotated freely by hand, and crankshaft continuity as well as thumb compression on both cylinders were confirmed.
MEDICAL AND TOXICOLOGIOCAL INFORMATION
An autopsy was conducted on the pilot at the Tennessee Office of the Medical Examiner, Nashville, Tennessee, where the cause of death was determined to be "multiple blunt force injuries."
Subsequent toxicological testing was performed by the FAA Forensic Toxicology Research Team, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with the following results:
Amlodipine in blood and urine, diphenhydramine in blood and urine, and rosuvastatin in urine only.
According to the National Institute of Health online reference, amlodipine is used to treat high blood pressure and chest pain, diphenhydramine is used to relieve symptoms of common cold, hay fever or allergies, and rosuvastatin is used to reduce cholesterol and other fatty substances in the blood.
FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. – One person has been killed after a small plane crash in Lincoln County.
The crash happened around noon Tuesday south of Fayetteville near Old Lincoln Road and Cut Off Lane, not far from the Fayetteville Municipal Airport.
Officials said the aircraft was found upside down.
The Tullahoma News has reported one fatality.
At least one ambulance and sheriff's deputies were on scene. NewsChannel 5 sister station WHNT reported Lincoln County Sheriff Murray Blackwelder was also at the crash site.
Information about what led to the crash was not available.
The identify of the pilot was not available.
Source: http://www.newschannel5.com
FAA spokesperson Kathleen Bergen confirmed that an investigator has been sent to Lincoln County after the report of a small plane crash there.
She said that it was not known if it was a small aircraft or an ultra-light plane.
If it is an ultra-light, the FAA will not investigate.
EARLIER REPORT
The Lincoln County Sheriff's Department confirms that officials are on the scene of the crash of a small plane.
The dispatcher said more information would be forthcoming.
Lincoln County, TN - Several fire departments and the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department are on the scene of an incident off Cut Off Trail just outside Fayetteville.
Witnesses tell WAAY 31 that a small plane crashed in the area around noon.
The scene is directly northeast of the Fayetteville Municipal Airport's runway, and southeast of the city of Fayetteville.
