20120913020329A

Received call from regional operations center on Thursday (9/13/12) night at approx. 7:55 pm regarding an accident in Cumming, GA.......aircraft N517DG a RV-7 model.....had crashed at the intersection of lanier drive and bamby road in Cumming, Georgia. (34 12' 36.''n - 84 03' 01.42'' w - elevation 1186 ft MSL) there were 2 fatalities at the the scene......pilot don Hall of Cumming, GA. And passenger david shorr of Cumming, GA.. The crash scene was secured by the forsyth county sheriff's office. Inspector's from the atlanta FSDO office arrived on scene at 0920, the NTSB (ralph hicks) and the Lycoming rep. Arrived shortly there after at approx. 0930. The aircraft had been moved to a grass knoll which was located 20-30 ft from the actual crash site. The aircraft crash site had been outlined and numerous photos were taken by forsyth sheriff's investigators before the wreckage was removed from the middle of lanier drive. Initial assessment of the wreckage began at approx 1030 after initial evidence was gathered from the sheriff's department. The aircraft damage was substantial.....showing evidence of compression at a high angle of descent. The area around the aircraft showed evidence of fuel. There was an initial crater of impact with the crank shaft broken in the crater with parts of the ring gear attached. The propeller (hartzell) was excavated and identified as sn K76958 and was observed to have damage near the tip as well as chord wise markings with some twist consistent with rotation. The 2nd blade was identified as sn K7659 and had little damage....the nose section of the aircraft was compressed and the engine was pushed against the fire wall.... The nose section below the rudder pedals were exposed and the pedals were pushed forward during impact. The cockpit section of the aircraft was extensively damaged, both of the instrument panels showed evidence of occupants impacting the panels dispite a 5 point harness system which was still intact. The propeller and hub were separated from the aircraft due to overload from the crash.... The flight controls were verified for the aileron and rudder...... The elevator continuity was compromised during the crash due to impact..... The wings and nose section were severely compressed to the forward spar indicating a high angle of impact..... The canopy area had broken up and portions were located behind the aircraft..... The empenage just aft of the flight compartment was deflected slightly downward. The engine under went a field break down by the Lycoming engine rep........important items to note were: fuel was noted in the manifold and injectors, the magnetos were tested and produced spark, the oil screen was clean, the compression of the engine was found to be present as well as engine rotation and valve train action. The left fuel tank was selected on the fuel selector. The ELT was still active and the battery was due for replacement on July 2012 according to the placard on the battery. The ignition switch was observed in the both position. ........mixture control was full rich, propeller was set for high RPM and the throttle was 3/4 full. The glass display was an advanced flight systems af 3500 series, the aircraft was also equipped with a garmin 430 GPS,.....all avionics were taken by NTSB (ralph hicks) for further data analysis. The maintenance records were not located at this time............a flight ledger in the aircraft indicated the aircraft had 282 hours on the hobbs in July of 2012. The pilots log book was examined at stoney point (6GAO) pvt air strip and indicated that his last flight review was in November of 2011. Witness statements indicate that the aircraft was seen in a pitched up attitude, followed by a lowering of the nose or reduction in pitch,...followed by another pitch up moment. Followed by a wing over or roll to the right......shortly there after the aircraft disappeared below the trees and impacted the ground