# Accident 20100915047189A: Powrachute AIRWOLF 912, Pleasent Garden, NC, September 15, 2010

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 15, 2010, 16:10 local time
- Place: Pleasent Garden, NC
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Rotation
- Operating rules: Ultralight vehicle (Part 103)
- Location: 35.9519° N, 79.7231° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.9519&lon=-79.7231&mi=10
- Aircraft: N377JA (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: POWRACHUTE AIRWOLF 912
- Reported engine: ROTAX 912ULS
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 2
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 81 total, 21 in this make and model
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA10CA480](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA10CA480) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20100915047189A

## Narrative

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

ON SEPTEMBER 15, 2010,  AT ABOUT 1610 EDT. AN  AIRWOLF 912, N377JA EXPERIMENTAL LIGHT SPORT POWERED PARACHUTE, REGISTERED TO ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ EXPERIENCED A LOSS OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AFTER ENCOUNTERING A WIND GUST ON TAKEOFF FROM A PASTURE BEHIND A PRIVATE RESIDENCE PRIOR TO BEGINNING HIS TAKEOFF THE WIND SOCK INDICATED THE WINDS WERE CALM. AS HE INITIATED THE TAKEOFF ROLL HE ENCOUNTERED A GUST OF WIND. THE PARACHUTE WAS BLOWN TO THE LEFT AND THE AIRCRAFT VEERED TO THE LEFT. HE LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT AND IT COLLIDED WITH SOME BUSHES. ON SEPTEMBER 16, 2010, AN EXAMINATION OF THE ACCIDENT SITE WAS CONDUCTED, DURING THE EXAMINATION IT WAS OBSERVED GUSTY AND SHIFTING WIND CONDITIONS IN AND AROUND THE ACCIDENT SITE AS REPORTED BY THE ACCIDENT PILOT AND PASSENGER DUE TO THE TERRAIN LOCATED IN THE VICINITY OF THE TAKEOFF AND LANDING AREA.THE PILOT RECEIVED A BROKEN LEFT LEG AND HIS PASSENGER WAS NOT INJURED. WHEN ASKED IF THE AIRCRAFT HAD ANY MECHANICAL MALFUNCTIONS THE PILOT STATED NO.EXAMINATION OF THE AIRFRAME REVEALED THE AIRFRAME RECEIVED STRUCTURAL DAMAGE TO THE SUPPORT TUBE TO THE FRONT FRAME. NO ANOMALIES WERE NOTED WITH THE FLIGHT CONTROLS, ENGINE ASSEMBLY, AND ACCESSORIES. ACCORDING TO WITNESSES THE ENGINE WAS OPERATING AT THE TIME OF IMPACT AND HAD TO BE SHUT DOWN BY DISCONNECTION OF THE FUEL LINES TO THE ENGINE, THIS WAS DUE TO  THE ENGINE SHUT OFF SWITCH AND ENGINE CONTROLS BEING DAMAGED ON  IMPACT.

## 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 ERA10CA480](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA10CA480), Sep 15, 2010: Powrachute Airwolf 912 (N377JA), Pleasant Garden, NC, no damage. Probable cause: The pilot's loss of directional control on takeoff during an encounter with a wind gust.

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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