Oxnard, CA, USA
N130LD
AYERS LESS DRAG SPECIAL
Two witnesses stated that they observed the airplane taxi out and take off, and they reported that the engine sounded good. Additional witnesses reported seeing the airplane depart and then hearing the engine backfire and sputter before losing power. The airplane banked left as if the pilot were trying to return to the airport. The airplane's nose pitched up, it stalled, and then its nose pitched down before it impacted terrain. A postimpact fire destroyed the fuselage, cabin, cockpit, and right wing. The left wing and empennage were seriously damaged by the fire and impact forces. No anomalies were noted during the postaccident examination that would have resulted in the loss of engine power or the subsequent loss of airplane control. The witnesses' descriptions of the event were consistent with the airplane entering an aerodynamic stall/spin while the pilot was attempting to return to the airport after encountering a loss of engine power during initial climb. A review of weight and balance data revealed that the airplane would have been within its center of gravity limits at the time of the accident.
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On June 29, 2013, about 1210 Pacific daylight time, N130LD, an Ayers Less Drag Special experimental, amateur-built airplane, was substantially damaged following an uncontrolled descent and impact with terrain about 1 nautical mile southwest of the Oxnard Airport (OXR), Oxnard, California. The certified private pilot/owner, who occupied the front pilot seat, and the certified private pilot passenger who occupied the rear seat, both sustained fatal injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local personal light, which was being operated in accordance with 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91, and a flight plan was not filed. The accident occurred shortly after the airplane departed OXR. Local law enforcement personnel provided the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) with numerous witness statements from individuals who either observed or heard the accident occur. One witness observed the airplane take off, and described the engine as "sounding odd," appeared to not be running smoothly, then powered up before he heard it backfire and sputter. The witness stated that he then saw the airplane bank left, as if it were attempting to return to the airport, then the nose pitched up and completely stalled before falling from the sky; he lost sight of it after it went behind a stand of trees. Three witnesses reported seeing the airplane taxi out for takeoff and depart. One stated how impressed she was with how well the engine sounded, and the remaining two said they had no concerns or issues with how the airplane was operating. A fifth witness, who was working in a nearby agricultural field, stated that he initially observed the airplane overhead, and that the engine appeared to have failed and lost power. He further stated that he watched the airplane turn around, in what he described as an attempt to land, but subsequently crashed into a field south of his location. A sixth witness, who was working in a field just south of the accident site, reported that he heard the airplane overhead, looked up, noticed that the engine had stopped, and then watched it descend nose first before it impacted terrain. In an examination of the accident site, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airworthiness inspector reported that the airplane had crashed into a plowed agricultural field about 1 mile southwest of the departure end of OXR runway 25. The debris field was estimated to be about 50 yards in diameter, with no extended linear debris path observed. The inspector stated that the initial impact point was evidenced by a depression about 2 feet in depth; the main wreckage came to rest about 6 feet due east of the initial impact point. All components necessary for flight were accounted for at the accident site. The airplane was recovered to a secured storage facility for further examination. PERSONNEL INFORMATION The pilot/owner, age 67, possessed a private pilot certificate for airplane single-engine land. According to the pilot's personal flight log, as of May 30, 2013, he had accumulated a total flying time of 1,129.3 hours, with 140.1 hours in the same make and model as the accident airplane. It was also revealed that the pilot had flown 8 hours in the last 90 days, and 3 hours in the last 30 days, all in the accident airplane. Additionally, records indicated that the pilot had completed his most recent FAA flight review on December 27, 2011, and received his most recent FAA third-class airman medical certificate on September 14, 2011, with the limitation, "Must have available glasses for near vision." The pilot/owner was issued an FAA Repairman Experimental Aircraft Builder certificate on March 5, 2010. According to records maintained by the FAA, the pilot rated passenger, age 54, was issued a private pilot certificate on August 5, 1993. He reported a total of 222 hours total flight time, and 3 hours in the last six months on his most recent FAA third-class airman medical examination, which was performed on August 17, 2012, with the limitation, "Must wear corrective lenses." AIRCRAFT INFORMATION The accident pilot/owner personally built the Less Drag Special, which was a single-engine, low-wing, tandem-seat, conventional gear airplane, serial number 1. The airplane was equipped with a Lycoming IO-540-X, s/n L-5444-40 engine. It was also equipped with a four-bladed constant speed propeller, each blade of composite construction. There was no data plate affixed to the engine. Horsepower (hp) and revolutions per minute ratings (rpm) could not be determined. According to the engine serial number stamped on the case, the subject engine was originally shipped from the Lycoming factory on August 14, 1962, as a normally aspirated (carbureted) model O-540-A1D5, rated at 250 hp at 2575 revolutions per minute. According to maintenance records provided by a family member, a FAA Designated Airworthiness Representative (DAR) issued the pilot/owner a Special Airworthiness Certificate, and Experimental Amateur-Built Operating Limitations on March 5, 2010. The last recorded maintenance entry was on July 9, 2012, in which a 12-month condition inspection was performed at a total time of 87.8 hours. During the investigation a friend of the pilot/owner reported that he had flown with the pilot/owner on several occasions, that the airplane was configured with a control stick in the rear pilot station, however, no rudder pedals were installed. Additionally, he stated that the rear pilot station was equipped with a press-to-talk intercom switch in order to communicate with the front seat pilot. WEIGHT AND BALANCE During the investigation weight and balance data for the accident airplane revealed that the center of gravity (CG) range was from 87.54 to 97.40 inches aft of datum. Calculations revealed that the airplane departed at its maximum gross weight, and considering the pilot/owner's and the pilot/passenger's weights, plus full fuel and/or minimum fuel and baggage, the computed CG would have been within the airplane's CG limits. (Refer to Weight and Balance documentation located in the docket for this report.) In a conversation with the NTSB IIC, a friend of the accident pilot, who was a certified private pilot, revealed that he had accompanied the pilot as a passenger on a cross-country flight during the summer of 2012, from Chico, California to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and return to Chico. The passenger, who described himself as weighing 240 pounds (lbs) and being 6 feet 5 inches tall, reported that prior to departing on the first leg of the flight the accident pilot, who he estimated to have weighed about 350 lbs, was concerned about the weight and balance of the airplane, to the extent that he removed one of the two batteries from the aft baggage compartment. The passenger stated that he did not remember if or how the pilot had computed the weight and balance for the flight, but there were no weight and balance issues during any portion of the flight to Wisconsin, or during the return to California. The passenger opined that the airplane was topped off with fuel in Chico prior to their departure, and then topped off on each intermediate leg; he also said he thought there was about 30 pounds of baggage in the aft baggage compartment. The passenger added that he thought the airplane was at or near its maximum gross weight for each leg of the flight. He reiterated that no weight and balance issues were encountered, and that the entire flight was uneventful. METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION At 1151, the OXR automated surface observation system (ASOS), reported wind 220 degrees at 5 knots, visibility 10 miles, sky clear, temperature 24 degrees Celsius (C), dew point 16 degrees C, and an altimeter setting of 29.83 inches of mercury. WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION According to the FAA inspector who surveyed the accident site, the airplane impacted a fallowed/plowed agricultural field in what the FAA inspector described as a flat spin; there was no signs or signatures of a straight-in or an angle crash. The initial point of contact observed with terrain was a depression of approximately 2 feet in depth, with a propeller blade imbedded. The inspector stated that the left wing showed signatures of a flat spin, and that ground contact did not show any signatures of a straight-in or angle crash. Additionally, the empennage/tail section of the airplane, inclusive of the horizontal stabilizer, the partial vertical stabilizer, and partial rudder all sustained impact and thermal damage. The inspector opined that the debris field was about 50 yards in diameter. A composite oxygen bottle was located about 75 yards south of main wreckage. MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION On July 1, 2013, an autopsy was performed on the front-seat pilot/owner at the Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office, Ventura, California. The findings of the autopsy revealed that the cause of death was as a result of multiple blunt force injuries. The Forensic Toxicology Fatal Accident Report was prepared by the FAA Civil Aeronautical Medical Institute, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for the pilot/owner. The report indicated testing for Carbon Monoxide and Cyanide not performed, no Ethanol detected in Muscle and Liver, and no drugs listed in the report detected in Liver. On July 1, 2013, an autopsy was performed on the rear-seat pilot/rated passenger at the Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office, Ventura, California. The findings of the autopsy revealed that the cause of death was as a result of multiple blunt force injuries. The Forensic Toxicology Fatal Accident Report was prepared by the FAA Civil Aeronautical Medical Institute, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for the pilot/rated passenger. The report indicated Carbon Monoxide detected in Blood, testing for Cyanide not performed, no Ethanol detected in Blood, and no drugs listed in the report detected in Blood. TESTS AND RESEARCH Airframe and Engine Examinations On July 28, 2013, an examination of the airframe was performed by the NTSB IIC, accompanied by a FAA airworthiness inspector. The results of the limited examination of the remnants of the airplane, based on the severe impact and thermal damage sustained during the accident sequence, revealed no mechanical anomalies with the airframe that would have precluded normal operation. (Refer to the Summary of Airplane Examination attached to the docket for this accident.) Engine Examination On August 6, 2013, under the supervision of the NTSB IIC, an examination of the airplane's engine was performed by a Lycoming Engines senior air safety investigator. The results of the examination revealed that there was no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunction of the engine that would have precluded normal operation. (Refer to the Summary of Airplane Examination attached to the docket for this accident.) Fuel Servo Examination On February 11, 2014, the airplane's fuel servo was examined by a technician of Airflow Performance, of Spartanburg, South Carolina. The examination of the component was overseen by two Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airworthiness inspectors assigned to the Columbia, South Carolina FAA Flight Standards District Office. An examination of the component revealed that based on flow tests and examination of the internal regulator parts, the fuel control was operational at the time of the accident. Additionally, impact damage to the throttle body did not allow running the unit in the airbox. Installation of a new throttle body assembly would have allowed the fuel control to be fully functional. Magneto Examination On August 15, 2013, under the supervision of the NTSB IIC, both magnetos were examined at the facilities of Aircraft Magnetos of Bainbridge Island, Washington. The examining technician reported that a partial disassembly of the two magnetos revealed that both were badly fire damaged and that all electrical components were destroyed. As such, no test runs were possible.
A loss of engine power after takeoff for reasons that could not be determined because postaccident examination did not reveal any anomalies that would have precluded normal operation, and the pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall/spin.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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