20130221001539I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Liberty Aerospace LIBERTY XL-2 · Bridgeport, CT · February 21, 2013

Date: February 21, 2013 · 10:20 local
Place: Bridgeport, CT
Airport: Igor Sikorsky Memorial Airport
Phase of flight: Takeoff: Rotation
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N572XL
Reported as: Liberty Aerospace Liberty XL-2
Reported engine: Continental IOF-240-B
People aboard: 2
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 220 total30 in this make and model30 in the last 90 days

N572XLRegistered now · Liberty Aerospace LIBERTY XL-2S/N 0057 Airframe modelLiberty Aerospace LIBERTY XL-2 Engine modelContinental IOF-240-BReciprocating

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 pilot and (1) passenger initiated a takeoff on runway 29 at kbdr. Conditions were VMC with winds 28012G19KT. The aircraft rotated and the pilot side door opened on rotation. The pilot attempted to close the door during the rotation and lost control. The aircraft pitched down and to the left, leaving the runway. The aircraft impacted the snow bank on the left side of the runway. The propeller blades and nose gear hit first and then both main gear.

As the FAA filed it

THE PILOT AND (1) PASSENGER INITIATED A TAKEOFF ON RUNWAY 29 AT KBDR. CONDITIONS WERE VMC WITH WINDS 28012G19KT. THE AIRCRAFT ROTATED AND THE PILOT SIDE DOOR OPENED ON ROTATION. THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO CLOSE THE DOOR DURING THE ROTATION AND LOST CONTROL. THE AIRCRAFT PITCHED DOWN AND TO THE LEFT, LEAVING THE RUNWAY. THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED THE SNOW BANK ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY. THE PROPELLER BLADES AND NOSE GEAR HIT FIRST AND THEN BOTH MAIN GEAR.