aviation accidents

The pilot reported he had recently obtained the pusher-type airplane, a RANS S-14, and that the accident flight was the first time he had flown it or any pusher-type airplane. He performed numerous taxi tests at the airport in Kewanee, Ill., over a three-hour period and then decided to take off and fly around the […]

The Socata TB20 Trinidad pilot was conducting an instrument approach for landing in night instrument meteorological conditions at the airport in Hilton Head Island, S.C. After receiving the approach clearance from air traffic control, he tuned his communication radio to the airport’s common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) and attempted to activate the airport lighting by […]

Several witnesses reported they observed the RV-3 make a steep climb shortly after takeoff from the airport in Las Cruces, N.M., and then make two 90° left bank turns to enter the downwind leg of the traffic pattern. During the turns, the wings were rocking back and forth, the airplane was in a nose-high attitude and not […]

The pilot reported the approach and landing were normal to an airport in Los Lunas, N.M., and he used right rudder to compensate for a left crosswind. During the landing roll his left foot slid off the rudder pedal and the RV-4 began to veer to the right. When he moved his foot back on the […]

The pilot advised a local air traffic controller that he was inbound on approach for landing to an airport in San Antonio, Texas. The controller instructed him to circle and then land on Runway 14, gave him the wind conditions, and told him that there was “rain on the airport.” A witness reported observing the […]

According to the pilot, the deHavilland Tiger Moth’s engine power and performance were “good,” and the airplane demonstrated its “gentle” handling characteristics through both left and right 30° banking turns. The plane crossed the airport in Williamson, Georgia, about traffic pattern altitude and then entered a vertical, nose-down descent. The pilot reported he could not recall […]

The pilot reported that during the takeoff roll in a Champion 7ECA at an airport in San Diego, he inadvertently actuated the left brake when his left foot became entangled within the rudder pedal and control cable. He then lost control of the plane and subsequently groundlooped, which resulted in structural damage to the fuselage. […]

The pilot was making a night landing in visual meteorological conditions in San Antonio, Texas. During the rollout, a deer ran across the runway and was struck by the RV-8A, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing spar. The NTSB determined the probable cause as an unintentional collision with a deer at night. […]

According to the pilot, while enroute on a cross country flight the Cessna 177’s engine began to “sputter” before experiencing a total loss of power. The pilot declared an emergency and performed a forced landing on a dirt road near Landrum, S.C., resulting in substantial damage to the engine firewall. The pilot reported that his […]