Fairfield, IA, USA
N108BC
BOLLINGER ROBERT L BD 4
A witness reported seeing the airplane take off, make a 90-degree left turn, descend, and subsequently collide with terrain about 600 ft east of the runway. A postimpact fire ensued. During the examination of the accident site, all of the airplane's structure was found except for the propeller blades. The day after the accident, the airport manager found two of the three propeller blades while he was mowing grass. Photographs of the two propeller blades showed damage consistent with the in-flight separation of the blades. Neither blade exhibited impact or thermal damage. The breaks at the hub were not bent but pulled straight out. The reason for the in-flight separation of the propeller blades could not be determined.
On June 22, 2014, about 1117 central daylight time, a Bollinger BD-4 experimental amateur-built airplane, N108BC, impacted terrain next to at the Fairfield Municipal Airport (KFFL), Fairfield, Iowa. The pilot, the sole occupant on board, was fatally injured, and the airplane was destroyed. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed. The local flight was originating at the time of the accident.The airplane was seen to take off on runway 18, make a 90-degree left turn, descend and collide with terrain about 600 feet east of the runway. There was a post-impact fire. Four Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors went to the scene. According to the lead inspector, all of the airplane structure was accounted for with the exception of the propeller blades. Several days after the accident, the airport manager notified FAA that while mowing the grass, he had found two of the three propeller blades. Examination of the photographs taken of the propeller blades revealed damage consistent with the blades having separated in flight. Neither blade bore impact or thermal damage signatures. The breaks at the hub were not bent but pulled straight out. The third blade was never found.
The pilot’s loss of airplane control due to the in-flight separation of the propeller blades for reasons that could not be determined based on the available evidence.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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