14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Saturday, April 05, 2014 in New Iberia, LA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 06/18/2014
Aircraft: BELISLE THOMAS J RV7A, registration: N119TB
Injuries: 1 Minor.
NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.
The pilot planned on a long cross-country flight. According to the pilot, he made a fuel stop and got something to eat and drink, and then continued the flight. As he approached his next stop, he reported that he contacted the tower controller, who cleared him for a right base for the runway. The airplane approached the runway, flew about 1,000 feet down the runway, and then drifted off to the right. The airplane then flew across a parallel taxiway, made a right turn, and impacted terrain, just east of the runway. The pilot reported that he did not remember the accident, nor climbing out of the airplane. By the time the first responders arrived, he was able to walk around the airplane and waved to them to indicate that he was not injured. He added that the last thing he remembered, was making the approach, and then looking at the wrecked airplane. Examination of the airplane revealed substantial damage to the fuselage. The airplane was not equipped with carbon monoxide detectors, however, the heat exchanger had been removed and the ports plugged, and no indications that carbon monoxide had leaked into the cabin. The examination did not reveal any mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Additionally, the pilot reported no problems with the airplane prior to the accident. The pilot added that he was given several tests at the hospital, but doctors told him it was probably due to dehydration.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
The pilot's loss of control due to a temporary incapacitation.
The pilot of a small plane has only minor injuries after a crash this afternoon in New Iberia.
Deputies say reports of an aircraft accident west of the runway at the Acadiana Regional Airport came around 3:10 p.m. Saturday.
Investigators say a single engine aircraft crashed near 4100 Industrial Drive.
Deputies say the pilot, 72-year-old Thomas Belisle of Stockton, California, was the only person on board the single engine aircraft.
Belisle was taken to the hospital as a precaution.
Investigators say Belisle was traveling from an air show in Lakeland, Florida to visit friends in New Iberia when the accident occurred.
The Federal Aviation Administration has been notified.
Source: http://www.katc.com
NEW IBERIA — Officials say the pilot of a single-engine plane is unscathed after his plane missed the Acadiana Regional Airport runway and landed in a sugar cane field Saturday afternoon.
Acadiana Regional Airport director Jason Devilier said they still aren’t sure what happened to make the plane go down in a field between AvEx and Bristow. He said he could not release the pilot’s name but said it was not a local pilot.
The pilot was flying a single-engine, two-seat “kit plane” alone when the plane landed in the field and flipped.
“He missed the runway by a long way,” Acadiana Airport Authority chair Bill Miller said.
He said the pilot lost consciousness, but Miller did not know if it was before or after the crash.
Devilier said the pilot was walking around and coherent before Acadiana Ambulance took him to Iberia Medical Center.
