Jeff Sharman is shown here inside his Nut Tree Airport business.
(Courtesy Curt Fargo)
OUR FRIEND JEFF: http://solanopilots.com/gonewest
NTSB: Force of collision severed aircraft's wing
Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board have determined that a mid-air collision with a large bird is to blame for the structural failure of the wing of an experimental airplane last year that sent the craft plummeting to the ground, killing its pilot.
Jeffrey Sharman, a 68-year-old Vacaville resident and lifelong aviation enthusiast, was identified as the owner and pilot of the Avions Fairey Tipsy Nipper T-66 that sustained major damage Feb. 13, 2013, after hitting a turkey vulture, causing the wing to break apart and Sharman to lose control of the plane just south of Winters, according to a report by NTSB investigators.
The NTSB report, citing the impact with the bird as the probable cause of the accident, was approved May 8.
The 1959 single-engine, propeller-driven airplane was manufactured by Avions Fairey in Charleroi, Belgium and was certified in the U.S. as an experimental exhibition airplane, reports stated.
Sharman had taken off from Yolo County Airport, was believed to be heading to Vacaville's Nut Tree Airport and was in cruise flight approximately 2,000 feet above the ground when the impact occurred, according to the NTSB. Witnesses reported hearing "a loud 'crack' or 'snap' sound" and looked up to see something separate from the plane and two pieces spiral to the ground.
The outboard four feet of the right wing was found in the median of Interstate 505, about 2,000 feet north of the main wreckage along the eastbound embankment near Wolfskill Road.
The wing was later shipped to the National Transportation Safety Board's Materials Laboratory in Washington, D.C. Post-accident examination of the plane's wing revealed blood spots and "a downy barbule," according to investigators.
The samples were sent to the Smithsonian Institution Feather Identification Laboratory for expert analysis and later determined to be a fragment of a turkey vulture feather, the NTSB stated. According to experts at the Smithsonian, turkey vultures average around 4.5 pounds and have a wing span that can measure up to 6 feet.
A dead turkey vulture was also found near the wreckage, the NTSB reported.
Remembered by many for his helpful, friendly demeanor, Sharman entered into the aviation realm following in the footsteps of his father.
Originally from South Africa, Sharman came to California in 1986 and founded an aircraft rebuilding business that eventually included exporting plane parts and shipping, which was later renamed Sharman Enterprises Inc., based out of the Nut Tree Airport.
Toxicology tests performed by the FAA's Civil Aeromedical Institute in Oklahoma City came back negative for alcohol or drug use.
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NTSB Identification: WPR13FA123
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Wednesday, February 13, 2013 in Winters, CA
Probable Cause Approval Date: 05/08/2014
Aircraft: AVIONS FAIREY TIPSY NIPPER T-66, registration: N1959N
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 airplane was in cruise flight about 2,000 feet above the ground when several witnesses reported hearing a loud "crack," "pop," or "snap" sound and then looking up and seeing something separate from the airplane and then pieces falling to the ground. The outboard 4 feet of the right wing was found about 2,000 feet away from the main wreckage, and a turkey vulture carcass was found near the wing section. Postaccident examinations of the wing section revealed blood spots and a downy barbule, which was identified as a fragment of a turkey vulture feather.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
The airplane's impact with a turkey vulture in cruise flight, which resulted in the structural failure of the right wing and the subsequent loss of control.
http://www.ntsb.gov
