20110802016369A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · Rans S-18 · Fayetteville, TN · August 2, 2011

Date
August 2, 2011 · 11:08 local
Place
Fayetteville, TN
Phase of flight
Maneuver
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Substantial damage
Aircraft
NONE
Reported as
Rans S-18
People aboard
1
Fatal injuries
1
Other injuries
0
Pilot’s certificate
Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours
640 total

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

The owner had 200 acres of property with a grass strip runway on it. The pilot had over 600 hours total pilot time logged, but the last entry in his logbook was August 14, 2005. He had performed a number of taxi tests to get accustomed to the light sport aircraft he had recently purchased before the day of the accident. He departed the grass strip on a heading of 030 and made a left turn and flew parallel to the runway at an altitude of 100-200 ft., then made another left turn crossing over the end of the grass strip. One hundred yards after crossing over the grass strip, the pilot lost directional control and impacted the ground in a vertical attitude, coming to rest upside down on a heading of 095.

As the FAA filed it

THE OWNER HAD 200 ACRES OF PROPERTY WITH A GRASS STRIP RUNWAY ON IT. THE PILOT HAD OVER 600 HOURS TOTAL PILOT TIME LOGGED, BUT THE LAST ENTRY IN HIS LOGBOOK WAS AUGUST 14, 2005. HE HAD PERFORMED A NUMBER OF TAXI TESTS TO GET ACCUSTOMED TO THE LIGHT SPORT AIRCRAFT HE HAD RECENTLY PURCHASED BEFORE THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT. HE DEPARTED THE GRASS STRIP ON A HEADING OF 030 AND MADE A LEFT TURN AND FLEW PARALLEL TO THE RUNWAY AT AN ALTITUDE OF 100-200 FT., THEN MADE ANOTHER LEFT TURN CROSSING OVER THE END OF THE GRASS STRIP. ONE HUNDRED YARDS AFTER CROSSING OVER THE GRASS STRIP, THE PILOT LOST DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AND IMPACTED THE GROUND IN A VERTICAL ATTITUDE, COMING TO REST UPSIDE DOWN ON A HEADING OF 095.