# Accident 20041217030779A: Akers RA40DEFIANT, Slaton, TX, December 17, 2004

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 17, 2004, 13:40 local time
- Place: Slaton, TX
- Airport: Slaton Municipal Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.5122° N, 101.6492° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.5122&lon=-101.6492&mi=10
- Aircraft: N765MM, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N765MM-2007-11-21) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Akers Douglas RA40 DEFIANT (registry code 056171Q, https://openairdocs.org/model/akers-douglas-ra40-defiant) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming 0-320 series (registry code 41508, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-0-320-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AKERS RA40DEFIANT
- Reported engine: LYC O320*
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 0 total, 0 in this make and model, 0 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB DFW05LA043](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DFW05LA043) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20041217030779A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) ON DECEMBER 17, 2004 AT APPROXIMATELY 1340 CST, THE PILOT OF AN AKER DOUGLAS RA-40, N765MM, DEPARTED SLATON AIRPORT RUNWAY 36 HEADING IN A NORTHERLY DIRECTION, TOWARDS LUBBOCK, TEXAS. WITNESSES WHO OBSERVED THE TAKE-OFF REPORTED THAT THE AIRCRAFT CANOPY OPENED SHORTLY AFTER ROTATION AND AS THE AIRCRAFT CLIMBED OUT, THE PILOT APPEARED TO BE ATTEMPTING TO CLOSE THE CANOPY. THE AIRCRAFT MADE AN APPROXIMATE 360 DEGREE TURN AT THE NORTH END OF THE AIRPORT. THE FLIGHT PATH OF THE PLANE SEEMED TO RETURN TO A NORTHERLY DIRECTION. THE AIRCRAFT THEN BEGAN TO WOBBLE FROM SIDE TO SIDE. THE AIRCRAFT DISAPPEARED BEHIND THE CANYON RIM AT APPROXIMATELY 1350 CST. A SHORT TIME LATER SMOKE WAS SEEN COMING FROM THE AREA IN THE YELLOW HOUSE CANYON, NORTHEAST OF THE RUNWAY CENTERLINE WHERE THE AIRCRAFT WAS LAST SEEN.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB DFW05LA043](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DFW05LA043), Dec 17, 2004: Akers Douglas RA40 Defiant (N765MM), Slaton, TX, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control. Contributing factors were the opening of the canopy in-flight and the pilot's diverted attention.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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