# Accident 20140510006859A: Hoffius Stowe CHALLENGER II, Attica, IN, May 10, 2014

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 10, 2014, 13:38 local time
- Place: Attica, IN
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Maneuver
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.2367° N, 87.2331° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.2367&lon=-87.2331&mi=10
- Aircraft: N824SH, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N824SH-2018-03-16) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Hoffius Stowe CHALLENGER II (registry code 05676QA, https://openairdocs.org/model/hoffius-stowe-challenger-ii) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG (registry code 99999, https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: HOFFIUS STOWE CHALLENGER II
- Reported engine: AMA/EXPR HIRTH
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 249 total, 23 in this make and model, 7 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN14LA243](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN14LA243) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20140510006859A

## Narrative

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

MAY 10, 2014 AT APPROXIMATELY 13:30 LOCAL TIME, AN EXPERIMENTAL AMATEUR BUILT CHALLENGER II AIRCRAFT, WITH SERIAL NUMBER CH21290CW0600, WAS DESTROYED UPON IMPACT WITH TERRAIN LOCATED AT 458 EAST COVERED BRIDGE ROAD, ATTICA, INDIANA. THE UNITED STATES REGISTERED ?N? NUMBER IS N824SH.

THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED CIRCLING THIS PROPERTY CLOCKWISE, OWNED BY AN ACQUAINTANCE AT AN ALTITUDE ESTIMATED BY A WITNESS AT 500 FEET. IT WAS THEN OBSERVED DESCENDING TO APPROXIMATELY 300 FEET FLYING CIRCLES COUNTERCLOCKWISE JUST ABOVE THE TREES.

INSPECTORS KEEN AND THOMPSON ESTIMATED THE TREES ARE APPROXIMATELY 20 TO 50 FEET TALL.

THIS WITNESS THEN STATED THAT HE HEARD THE ENGINE SPUTTER FOLLOWED BY A RAPID DESCENT TO THE GROUND. THE 72 YEAR OLD PILOT AND SOLE OCCUPANT ONBOARD WAS FATALLY INJURED.

THE AIRCRAFT IS REGISTERED TO THE PILOT WHO WAS OPERATING THE AIRCRAFT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF TITLE 14 OF THE CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (CFR) PART 91. THE PILOT HELD A UNITED STATES PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE NUMBER ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, AND WAS ISSUED A MEDICAL CERTIFICATE ON NOVEMBER 23, 1992. THIS AIRCRAFT IS A ?LIGHT SPORT AIRCRAFT? THAT CAN BE OPERATED WITH A PRIVATE PILOT CERTIFICATE AND A VALID DRIVER?S LICENSE AS PER 14 CFR PART 61. (61.23)

DAY VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED FOR THIS FLIGHT. WEATHER REPORTED AT KLAF (LAFAYETTE, INDIANA) AT 12:54 LOCAL TIME: WIND 270 DEGREES @ 8 MPH, 70 DEGREES, ALTIMETER 29.96, VISIBILITY 10 MILES.

IT WAS NOTED THAT THE WITNESS THOUGHT IT WAS ?KIND OF WINDY? ABOVE THE TREES BUT IN THE VALLEY THE WINDS WERE CALM.

THE DEBRIS FIELD WAS CONTAINED IN AREA APPROXIMATELY 30 BY 30 FEET WITH THE ENTIRE FUSELAGE CONCERTINAED FORWARD DUE TO THE IMPACT. THE DAMAGE TO THE RIGHT WING AND THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE FUSELAGE INDICATES THAT THE AIRCRAFT WAS ROTATING TO THE RIGHT AND IMPACTED THE TERRAIN FIRST. THIS WOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH A POSSIBLE STALL SPIN SCENARIO THAT WAS DESCRIBED BY THE WITNESS.

A REVIEW OF THE AIRCRAFT LOGBOOKS COULD NOT VERIFY THAT AN ANNUAL CONDITION INSPECTION HAD EVER BEEN COMPLIED WITH. IT IS NOTED THAT THE EVALUATION AND TEARDOWN OF THE NEW (03/15/2014) ?HIRTH 2 CYLINDER, 2 CYCLE 50 HP ENGINE? APPEARS TO SHOW THAT IT WAS BEING OPERATED AT A HIGH RPM SETTING AT  THE TIME OF IMPACT.

A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR IS NOTED THAT ON APRIL 12, 2014, THE AIRMAN CONTACTED A MAINTENANCE FACILITY STATING THAT HE WAS HAVING ISSUES WITH HIS AIRSPEED INDICATOR AND THAT HE HAD BEEN OPERATING WITHOUT RELIABLE READINGS ON PREVIOUS FLIGHTS. THERE WERE NO LOGBOOK ENTRIES SHOWING THAT THIS HAD BEEN REPAIRED.

## 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 CEN14LA243](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN14LA243), May 10, 2014: Hoffius Stowe Challenger II (N824SH), Attica, IN, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed and his exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle-of-attack while maneuvering at low altitude, which led to an aerodynamic stall and loss of…

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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