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Aviation Accident Factual Report - National Transportation Safety Board: https://app.ntsb.gov/pdf
http://registry.faa.gov/N7929Z
Location: Castalia, NC
Accident Number: ERA18LA048
Date & Time: 12/16/2017, 1440 EST
Registration: N7929Z
Aircraft: CESSNA 150
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Defining Event: Aerodynamic stall/spin
Injuries: 1 Fatal
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General Aviation - Personal
On December 16, 2017, at 1440 eastern standard time, a Cessna 150C, N7929Z, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain after takeoff from a farm field in Castalia, North Carolina. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed in the area, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight, which was destined for Triangle North Executive Airport (LHZ), Louisburg, North Carolina.
The purpose of the flight was to recover the airplane from the field after a student pilot performed a precautionary landing there the previous day. The student reported that he had reduced engine power and airspeed after encountering turbulence; the engine subsequently became unresponsive to throttle inputs, and the student performed a successful landing to the field.
The student pilot accompanied his father (who was an airline transport pilot), a mechanic, and the accident pilot (who was the owner of the airplane) to the field to retrieve the airplane. The accident pilot and the mechanic sampled the fuel, examined and test ran the engine, during which no anomalies were observed, and subsequently determined that the airplane was ready for flight. The field was oriented east/west and was about 1,000 ft long and 500 ft wide. The eastern and southern borders of the field were bisected diagonally by high-tension power lines that were oriented northeast/southwest, and an estimated 40 ft above the ground at their lowest point. The southern border consisted of a small pond and a creek bed (see figure 1).
Figure 1: Overhead View of Accident Site (Google Earth)The property owner also witnessed the accident and recorded the takeoff with his cell phone. Review of the video and measurements taken by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector revealed that, 300 ft after the airplane began its takeoff roll, the airplane turned sharply left toward the powerlines. After 400 ft, the airplane pitched up sharply and banked steeply left as it lifted off. The airplane neared the apex of its climb about 50 ft above the ground in about a 60° left bank, when the camera panned down and the airplane was no longer in frame. Shortly thereafter, the camera panned back up in time to capture the airplane's collision with terrain. Throughout the takeoff roll, initial climb, and the flight to ground contact, the engine was heard accelerating smoothly and running continuously at high power without interruption.
Pilot Information
Certificate: Flight Instructor; Commercial
Age: 70, Male
Airplane Rating(s): Multi-engine Land; Single-engine Land
Seat Occupied: Left
Other Aircraft Rating(s): None
Restraint Used: Unknown
Instrument Rating(s): Airplane
Second Pilot Present: No
Instructor Rating(s): Airplane Single-engine
Toxicology Performed: Yes
Medical Certification: Class 2 With Waivers/Limitations
Last FAA Medical Exam: 01/11/2017
Occupational Pilot: Yes
Last Flight Review or Equivalent:
Flight Time: 8400 hours (Total, all aircraft), 100 hours (Total, this make and model)
The pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land, multiengine land, and instrument airplane. His most recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued January 11, 2017. He declared 8,400 total hours of flight experience on that date.
Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information
Aircraft Make: CESSNA
Registration: N7929Z
Model/Series: 150 C
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Year of Manufacture: 1963
Amateur Built: No
Airworthiness Certificate: Normal
Serial Number: 15060029
Landing Gear Type: Tricycle
Seats: 2
Date/Type of Last Inspection: 10/20/2017, Annual
Certified Max Gross Wt.: 1499 lbs
Time Since Last Inspection:
Engines: 1 Reciprocating
Airframe Total Time: 2068 Hours as of last inspection
Engine Manufacturer: Lycoming
ELT:
Engine Model/Series:
Registered Owner: On file
Rated Power: 150 hp
Operator: On file
Operating Certificate(s) Held: None
According to FAA records, the airplane was manufactured in 1963. Its most recent annual inspection was completed on October 20, 2017, at 2,068 total aircraft hours.
Meteorological Information and Flight Plan
Conditions at Accident Site: Visual Conditions
Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation: KLHZ, 369 ft msl
Distance from Accident Site: 10 Nautical Miles
Observation Time: 1440 EST
Direction from Accident Site: 248°
Lowest Cloud Condition: Clear
Visibility: 10 Miles
Lowest Ceiling: None
Visibility (RVR):
Wind Speed/Gusts: Calm /
Turbulence Type Forecast/Actual: /
Wind Direction:
Turbulence Severity Forecast/Actual: /
Altimeter Setting: 30.21 inches Hg
Temperature/Dew Point: 8°C / -5°C
Precipitation and Obscuration: No Obscuration; No Precipitation
Departure Point: Castalia, NC
Type of Flight Plan Filed: None
Destination: LOUISBURG, NC (LHZ)
Type of Clearance: None
Departure Time: EST
Type of Airspace: Class G
At 1440, the weather reported at LHZ, 10 miles west of the accident site, included clear skies, 10 miles visibility, and calm winds. The temperature was 8°C, the dew point was -5°C, and the altimeter setting was 30.21 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
Crew Injuries: 1 Fatal
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Passenger Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Fire: On-Ground
Ground Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 1 Fatal
Latitude, Longitude: 36.086944, -78.138056 (est)
The wreckage was examined at the accident site by two FAA inspectors and all major components were accounted for at the scene. The instrument panel and engine compartments were separated from the cockpit but remained attached by wires, cables, and floor structure. The propeller was partially buried, and the engine and instrument panel displayed thermal damage from a small postcrash fire.
Control continuity was established from the flight controls to the flight control surfaces. One aileron control cable displayed fractures consistent with overstress.
A detailed examination was performed on the airframe and engine at a recovery facility in Griffin, Georgia. The examination revealed no pre-impact mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation.
Medical And Pathological Information
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Raleigh, North Carolina, submitted a Report of Investigation on the pilot. No autopsy was performed because the pilot died in a physician's care on December 17, 2017. The probable cause of death was "multiple blunt force injuries."
The FAA Forensic Sciences Laboratory did not perform toxicological testing on the pilot as no samples were submitted.
Steve MerrittSteve was born Dec. 14, 1947, in Rose Hill, N.C. He graduated from New Hanover High School in Wilmington in 1966, earning the distinction of Eagle Scout during this time. Steve graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1970.
After one tour in the U.S. Navy, Steve went to work for the Sea Pines Company in Hilton Head Island, running the aviation assets of the company and managing the Hilton Head Airport. This began Steve’s lifelong association with and passion for flight. As an avid aviator, he worked for the North Carolina DOT Aeronautical Division for several years before founding Capital Printing Corporation of Raleigh. Steve served as the lead technical advisor for NCDOT during the centennial celebration of the Wright Brothers First Flight at Kill Devil Hills. Most recently, Steve was the Airport Manager for Franklin County, N.C., where he promoted the economic development importance of a quality airport for Franklin County.
Steve used aviation as the means through which he gave back to the world. Among other volunteer flight missions, he served as a volunteer coordinator for pilots across America to join together to fly medical supplies into Haiti just days after the earthquake. Steve also founded and was the president of Bahamas Habitat which helped with relief efforts in the Caribbean via the use of private aircraft and volunteer pilots which included, among many other projects, building Zion Children’s Home on Current Island, Bahamas, to provide a safe home for children in need.
He was also founder of the One Eleuthera Foundation. An animal lover, he was involved in several rescue efforts flying dogs and cats from disaster areas in the Bahamas and Cuba to safety elsewhere. He was very proud to serve on the board of directors of Able Flight, which provides flight and aviation career training to those with disabilities.
As a flight instructor in both regular aircraft and gliders, one of the things Steve loved most was watching the young pilots he had trained take their first solo flights. He was also passionate about introducing Civil Air Patrol cadets to glider flying and training them. Steve was a longtime member of Rotary and a Paul Harris Fellow.
Although he was passionate about flying and volunteerism, Steve valued family first. Whether it was helping his daughter, Sarah, prepare for her next basketball game or helping his son, Holmes, earn his own Eagle Scout, Steve was a devoted father while raising his children along with his loving wife, Jane, with whom he shared 45 years of marriage. He and Jane had the great joy of celebrating the marriages of both Sarah and Holmes during the past year.
Steve was preceded in death by his parents, Eugene Worth Merritt and Rosa Farrior Merritt of Wilmington.
He is survived by his wife, Jane Godwin Merritt; daughter, Sarah Merritt Ryan, and her husband, William J. Ryan, of Raleigh; son, Wellington Holmes Merritt II, and his wife, Brittany Young Merritt, of Decatur, Ga.; sister, Sandra Merritt Brown, and her husband, Larry Richard Brown, of Pittsburgh, Pa.; brothers, Eugene Worth Merritt Jr. and John Douglas Merritt, and his wife, Felicia Huffman Merritt, all of Wilmington; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
A visitation will be held from 5 to 8 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 21, at Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, 200 Southeast Maynard Road, Cary. A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m., Friday, Dec. 22, at First United Methodist Church, 117 South Academy Street.
The family requests that, in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to Bahamas Habitat; Able Flight; or to provide scholarships to train Civil Air Patrol cadets by mailing a check made out to the Steve Merritt Scholarship Fund, 103 Dumbarton St., Cary, NC 27511.
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Louisburg, N.C. — The single-engine plane that crashed in a Nash County field on Saturday, killing the pilot, had experienced engine trouble the previous day, according to fellow pilots.
Steve Merritt, 70, a flight instructor and the manager of the Triangle North Executive Airport in Louisburg, went to retrieve the Cessna 150C plane, which a teenage pilot landed in a field off N.C. Highway 56 on Friday, fellow pilots said Monday. After a mechanic performed some work on the engine, Merritt took off, planning to return the plane to the airport, but it crashed shortly after takeoff, they said.
"What they were doing was very simple – just flying it off a rough field. It wasn’t a problem. He was a very experienced pilot," pilot John Styers said Monday.
"For some reason, he got off the ground, but he didn’t make it back," pilot Ben Cason said. "It's tragic, just tragic."
Merritt, who was from Cary, was the only person aboard when it crashed, authorities said. He died Sunday at WakeMed in Raleigh, according to his family.
"Steve was a huge personality here, and he's the glue that held a lot of us together," aircraft broker Ernesto Ibbott said. "We're all very much deeply feeling his loss today as a friend, as a professional."
Wellington Merritt said his father grew up in Wilmington, graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and served in Vietnam as a radioman for the Navy. He had various government jobs and owned a printing company before his work as a flight instructor and manager took off, his son said.
Steve Merritt also was heavily involved in various causes in the Bahamas, from animal rescues to building a home for orphan children, and he organized relief flights to Haiti after the 2010 earthquake there, family and friends said.
"Everybody loved him. Everybody loved Steve," Cason said.
"He loved flying very much. That rubbed off on many people," Ibbott said. "(He was) one of the most knowledgeable instructors you can find. He instilled a lot of confidence in a lot of student pilots."
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the crash.
Story and video: http://www.wral.com
FRANKLIN COUNTY (WTVD) -- According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the pilot involved in a plane crash Saturday afternoon has died.
The pilot was identified as Stephen Merritt, manager of the Triangle North Executive Airport.
The crash happened near N.C. Highway 56 and Walter Collins Road, east of Louisburg just after 2:30 p.m.
According to the FAA, a Cessna 150C aircraft crashed in a field in Franklin County.
They said there was a small fire on the plane when it went down, but fire crews were on scene to put out the flames.
The FAA is investigating the incident; they have yet to comment how the incident occurred.
Original article can be found here ➤ http://abc11.com
LOUISBURG, N.C. (WNCN) — The pilot of a small plane crashed Saturday afternoon in Franklin County is in critical condition after surgery, officials said.
The plane went down off Highway 56 just north of Walter Collins Road outside Louisburg, according to the North Carolina State Highway Patrol.
The Federal Aviation Administration responded to the scene.
FAA officials later said that a Cessna 150C aircraft crashed around 2:40 p.m. in a field near the town of Castalia.
The pilot, who was the only person on board, was injured and taken to WakeMed for treatment.
After surgery on Saturday, the pilot was listed in critical condition, according to Franklin County Sheriff Kent Winstead.
Story and video: http://wncn.com
FRANKLIN COUNTY (WTVD) -- According to the NC State Highway Patrol, Franklin County authorities responded to a plane crash near N.C. Highway 56 and Walter Collins Road, east of Louisburg.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said a Cessna 150C aircraft crashed in a field in Franklin County just after 2:30 Saturday afternoon.
They said there was a small fire on the plane when it went down, but fire crews were on scene to put out the flames.
The FAA said only the pilot was on board and he was taken to the hospital with serious injuries.
Officials with the FAA will be investigating.
Story and video: http://abc11.com
LOUISBURG, N.C. — The pilot of a small plane that crashed Saturday afternoon is listed in critical condition after surgery at Wake Med.
The Franklin County Sheriff's Office responded to a Cessna 150C crash in a field east of Louisburg near N.C. Highway 56.
Multiple agencies, including Highway Patrol and the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, responded to the crash that occurred around 2:45 p.m.
Authorities have not identified the pilot.
Story and video: http://www.wral.com
Louisburg, N.C. — The pilot of a small plane that crashed Saturday afternoon has been identified by officials as a Franklin County Airport Director.
Steve Merritt, a flight instructor and the manager of the Triangle North Executive Airport in Louisburg, is listed in critical condition Sunday after surgery at WakeMed.
On Saturday, the Franklin County Sheriff's Office responded to a two-seater plane crash in a field east of Louisburg near N.C. Highway 56 around 2:45 p.m.
A witness said Merritt appeared to be conscious while being taken from the scene.
http://www.wral.com
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