The National Transportation Safety Board did not travel to the scene of this accident.
Additional Participating Entity:
Federal Aviation Administration / Flight Standards District Office; Tampa, Florida
Winsors Pollitos Farm LLC
Location: O'Brien, FL
Accident Number: ERA21LA120
Date & Time: January 29, 2021, 14:39 Local
Registration: N9136R
Aircraft: RIVERS LINDSEY LEE VANS RV6A
Injuries: 1 Serious, 1 Minor
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General aviation - Personal
Aircraft and Owner/Operator Information
Aircraft Make: RIVERS LINDSEY LEE
Registration: N9136R
Model/Series: VANS RV6A
Aircraft Category: Airplane
Amateur Built: Yes
Operator:
Operating Certificate(s) Held: None
Operator Designator Code:
Meteorological Information and Flight Plan
Conditions at Accident Site: VMC
Condition of Light: Day
Observation Facility, Elevation: 24J,103 ft msl
Observation Time: 14:20 Local
Distance from Accident Site: 16 Nautical Miles
Temperature/Dew Point: 18.3°C
Lowest Cloud Condition: Clear
Wind Speed/Gusts, Direction: / ,
Lowest Ceiling: None
Visibility: 10 miles
Altimeter Setting: 29 inches Hg
Type of Flight Plan Filed: None
Departure Point: Live Oak, FL (24J)
Destination: O'Brien, FL (FD71)
Wreckage and Impact Information
Crew Injuries: 1 Serious, 1 Minor
Aircraft Damage: Substantial
Passenger Injuries: N/A
Aircraft Fire: None
Ground Injuries:
Aircraft Explosion: None
Total Injuries: 1 Serious, 1 Minor
Latitude, Longitude: 30.048,82.984 (est)
OBRIEN, Florida (WCJB) - A small aircraft crashed in the middle of an air strip in Suwannee County.
According to Suwannee Fire Rescue, units responded to an aircraft that landed on its roof in a middle of an airstrip at O’Brien Airpark.
Suwannee Fire Rescue says one person was flown via helicopter to an area trauma center.
Private owned strip which appears to be shared by some homeowners lining the strip. The pitfall of owning your own private grass strip is that you (or your neighborhood club) are responsible for maintaining it and ensuring it is safe to operate from. That doesn't happen sometimes, and this is the result. The hell was a divot doing smack in the middle off the strip? Looks like a pretty solid soft field otherwise.
ReplyDeleteProbably is FD71, which is one of a pair of strips near each other. Sure looks flat and well packed. Not mowing season, so a fresh brake-held tractor pivot turn divot or bush hog tailwheel bite would not seem likely.
Deletehttps://www.airnav.com/airport/FD71
The nose gear is the weak link on the RV series. Van's has several service letters and upgrades available and recommended, and there are aftermarket mods as well. Looks like another flip-over to add to the growing list.
ReplyDeleteAnd tough to get out off upside down, it you haven't already been knocked out.
ReplyDeleteVANS Aircraft Model: RV6A
ReplyDelete"You should research the incidents of A models tipping over on unimproved runways. While some seem to do fine on such surfaces, others have encountered conditions that ended up poorly. Personally, I avoid unimproved strips in my 6A. I have the nose gear mods."
or
"Here we go again. POOH,POOH, the RV-6A operates just as well off grass strips as other nose wheel aircraft. Just stay off the nose wheel when landing, and keep back pressure on the stick while rolling out, as you should do with any nose wheel aircraft when landing on grass. This does not mean the 6A is a bush plane by any means, but a fairly well groomed grass strip should be no concern. Why do we, especially RV folks, continue to promote this myth. Bob." https://vansairforce.net/community/showthread.php?t=72568