Leamington, UT, USA
N339JL
Straw T-Bird II
Witnesses observed the airplane flying low to the west. It started a left turn and continued until it nosed down to the ground. The witnesses heard a loud engine sound all the way until impact. A friend of the pilot examined the aircraft and found the inboard bolt on the left elevator bow was missing, and the outboard bolt was failed in a sheared/twisting mode. The reason that the bolt was missing was undetermined.
On September 4, 2006, at approximately 1400 mountain daylight time, a Straw T-Bird II experimental homebuilt airplane, N339JL, was substantially damaged following impact with terrain near Leamington, Utah. The private pilot, the sole occupant on board, was seriously injured. The pilot/owner was operating the flight under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local flight; the origination time was undetermined. The pilot had not filed a flight plan. Witnesses observed the airplane flying low to the west. They said it started a left turn and continued until it nosed down to the ground. They reported hearing a loud engine sound all the way until impact. A friend of the pilot examined the aircraft and found the inboard bolt on the left elevator bow was missing, and the outboard bolt was failed in a sheared/twisting mode. The reason that the bolt was missing was undetermined.
The pilot's loss of aircraft control (control not possible) due to the failure of the left elevator control surface which was the result of a missing inboard bolt (for undetermined reason) which holds the left elevator bow in place.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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