Saturday, June 09, 2012

Flower JD, N9010T: Accident occurred June 09, 2012 in Spring Valley, Ohio


NTSB Identification: CEN12LA349 
 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, June 09, 2012 in Spring Valley, OH
Probable Cause Approval Date: 09/12/2013
Aircraft: FLOWER ROGER P J D, registration: N9010T
Injuries: 1 Fatal.

NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

The owner-designed and built experimental airplane crashed in a grass field in a rural area after the left wing separated in flight. The main wreckage included the fuselage, engine, tail surfaces, and the right wing; the left wing was located about 1/2 mile from the main wreckage. The left wing was mostly intact, but the wing control surfaces had separated. Examination of the inboard end of the left main wing spar revealed that the wood structure of the spar had failed and separated at the spar attachment bolt locations. No witnesses to the accident flight were identified; however, it is likely that the pilot was maneuvering when the wing separation occurred. Because the airplane was a unique design and investigators did not have access to the design parameters, it was not possible to determine precisely why the wing spar failed. Postaccident examination of the airframe revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation other than the separated wing spar previously described. Based on the available evidence, it is likely that the left wing spar failed and resulted in an in-flight separation of the wing and the airplane’s subsequent impact with the ground.

The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The in-flight failure of the left wing spar, which resulted in the in-flight separation of the left wing.


HISTORY OF FLIGHT

On June 9, 2012, about 0805 eastern daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Flower model JD, N9010T, was destroyed when it impacted the ground following an in-flight separation of the left wing. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. The airplane sustained damage to all major structures during the accident sequence. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was not operated on a flight plan. The flight originated from the Greene County-Lewis A. Jackson Regional Airport, near Dayton, Ohio, at an unconfirmed time.

PERSONNEL INFORMATION

The pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with airplane single-engine land, airplane multiengine land, instrument airplane, and glider ratings. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records indicated that the pilot had accumulated over 7,000 hours of flight time as of his most recent medical examination on May 5, 2010. He was issued a third-class airman medical certificate on that date with a restriction to have corrective lenses available for near vision. The pilot’s flight logbook was not available for review during the investigation.

AIRCRAFT INFORMATION

The accident airplane was an original design amateur-built airplane. It was designed and built by the pilot. The airplane was a single-engine monoplane with a conventional landing gear arrangement. It used a fabric covered, welded steel tube structure in the fuselage and tail surfaces. The wings were made of a mixture of wood and composite material with wood spars as the primary load structure. A General Motors (GM) LS-1, reciprocating V-8 engine powered the airplane.

METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS

Weather conditions at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (FFO), located about 15 miles northwest of the accident site, at 0755, were: calm wind, visibility 10 miles, few clouds at 25,000 feet agl, temperature 17 degrees Celsius, dew point 13 degrees Celsius, and altimeter 30.04 inches of mercury.

WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION

The main wreckage came to rest in a grass field in a rural area northeast of Spring Valley, Ohio. Located in the debris field of the main wreckage were the fuselage, engine, tail surfaces, and the right wing.

The fuselage was severely damaged and crushed. The tail surfaces remained attached to the remains of the fuselage with their respective control surfaces still attached. The right wing was heavily damaged and separated from the fuselage. The wing had broken into several pieces and was distributed throughout the main debris field. The right wing control surfaces were also located within the main debris field. The damage to the right wing was consistent with it having remained attached to the fuselage until being separated by ground impact. The left wing of the airplane was located about 1/2 mile east of the main wreckage. The wing was predominately intact. The wing control surfaces were separated. Examination of the inboard end of the left main wing spar revealed that the wood structure of the spar had failed and separated through the spar attachment bolt locations.

The engine had sustained impact damage and could not be rotated. No further examination of the engine was performed.

Postaccident examinations of the airframe revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation other than the separated spar previously described.

MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION

An autopsy of the pilot was performed by the Montgomery County Coroner's Office, Dayton, Ohio, on June 10, 2012. The pilot's death was attributed to injuries received in the accident.

Toxicology testing was performed by the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute. Testing results found:

>> Ethanol detected in brain
>> 22 (mg/dL, mg/hg) Ethanol detected in muscle



NTSB Identification: CEN12LA349 
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, June 09, 2012 in Spring Valley, OH
Aircraft: FLOWER ROGER P J D, registration: N9010T
Injuries: 1 Fatal.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators may not have traveled in support of this investigation and used data provided by various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

On June 9, 2012, about 0805 eastern daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Flower model JD, N9010T, sustained substantial damage when it impacted the ground following an in-flight separation of the left wing. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. The airplane sustained damage to all major structures during the accident sequence. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was not operated on a flight plan. The flight originated from the Greene County-Lewis A. Jackson Regional Airport, near Dayton, Ohio,
at an unconfirmed time.

Preliminary reports indicated that the pilot was performing aerobatics when the left wing of the airplane separated.


One was killed in a plane crash in Greene County. 







SPRING VALLEY TWP., Ohio —

A 73-year-old Bellbook man killed in a plane crash Saturday morning was an experienced pilot who had built four planes like the “experimental aircraft” he flew that day, according to his wife.

Roger Flower died in the 8 a.m. crash, said Sgt. Anthony Pearcy of the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

“Some witnesses in the area did see the plane flying and the witnesses believe they did see something fall off the plane,” he said.

Flying out of the Lewis A. Jackson Regional Airport in Greene County, the plane flown by Flower crashed about 100 yards from a house at 1856 Ohio 380. Debris from the crash spread about 300 feet and the plane had extensive damage.

Flower was a naval aviator for 31 years who still loved to fly in his retirement, said Jan Flower, his wife of 50 years.

“It was his life, ” she said. “He was flying a plane that he had built and flew out of Greene County Airport and was there every day and loved it.”

After retiring from the Navy, he became a certified aviation engineer and began building his own aircraft, his wife said.

“He knew what he was doing about building it and just loved it and wasn’t ready to give up airplanes, so he built them,” she said.

Both natives of Ohio, Roger and Jan Flower have four sons and moved to Bellbrook eight years ago, when they were done traveling with the Navy.

She described her husband as “a leader, totally confident. (He) could tackle anything, could build or fix anything, loved his children and his grandchildren, (and) loved serving in his church.”

The OHSP is investigating the crash with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.

The plane was a fixed wing, single engine, experimental/homemade aircraft, according to the patrol.

“According to the family members, it’s been flown before,” said Pearcy.

There was no flight plan filed for the plane and the destination of the flight was unknown, Pearcy said.

“As unfortunate as this incident is, it is fortunate that no other people were involved,” Pearcy said.

Story and video:    http://www.whiotv.com

Emergency crews were called to the scene of a plane crash in Greene County.

One person has died in an early morning plane crash in Spring Valley Twp.
Roger Flower, 73, of Bellbrook died in the 8 a.m. crash, said Sgt. Anthony Pearcy of the Ohio State Highway Patrol. Flower was flying an experimental aircraft he built, Pearcy said.

“Some witnesses in the area did see the plane flying and the witnesses believe they did see something fall off the plane,” he said.

The plane crashed about 100 yards from a house at 1856 State Route 380. The fallen piece of the aircraft was located off Krepps Road, Pearcy said.

Debris from the crash spread about 300 feet and the plane had extensive damage.

“As unfortunate as this incident is, it is fortunate that no other people were involved,” Pearcy said.

OHSP is investigating with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.
 
GREENE COUNTY, Ohio (WDTN) - One person is dead following a small plane crash Saturday morning in Greene County’s Spring Valley Township. 

 The crash happened near State Route 380, south of Xenia.

Initial reports by witnesses suggested a wing fell off the plane, causing it to crash. The Federal Aviation Administration told 2 NEWS investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board would be on the scene Saturday morning to investigate.

The victim’s information and the type of plane have not yet been released. Officials will release the name of the victim once the family has been notified. 

One person has died after a small airplane crashed in Greene County Saturday morning. 

The Ohio State Highway Patrol has confirmed that a plane crashed in Greene County Saturday morning, and a spokesperson from the Federal Aviation Administration said one person was killed in the crash. 

 The plane wrecked in a field near Krepps Road and State Route 380 south of Xenia before 8 a.m. 

 Numerous witnesses told News Center that a wing fell off the plane, causing it to go down. 

Sources: 

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