# Accident 20151213019929A: Golden Circle Air Inc T-BIRD II, Lenoir, NC, December 13, 2015

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 13, 2015, 17:24 local time
- Place: Lenoir, NC
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.9444° N, 81.4900° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.9444&lon=-81.4900&mi=10
- Aircraft: N92744, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N92744-2019-02-26) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Golden Circle Air T-BIRD II (registry code 059017D, https://openairdocs.org/model/golden-circle-air-t-bird-ii) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Rotax 582DCDI (registry code 55562, https://openairdocs.org/engine/rotax-582dcdi) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: GOLDEN CIRCLE AIR INC T-BIRD II
- Reported engine: ROTAX 582DCDI
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 91 total, 24 in this make and model, 7 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA16LA067](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA16LA067) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20151213019929A

## Narrative

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

ON DECEMBER 13, 2015 AT APPROXIMATELY 1724 LOCAL TIME, N92744 AN EXPERIMENTAL T-BIRD II, TOOK OFF FROM LOWER CREEK AIRPORT (NC27) AND SUBSEQUENTLY CRASHED INTO TERRAIN WHILE MAKING A RIGHT CROSSWIND TURN. THE PILOT^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^SURVIVED THE ACCIDENT, THOUGH HE WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED AND WAS AIRLIFTED TO CMC MAIN IN DOWNTOWN CHARLOTTE, NC.

VMC (VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS) WEATHER WAS REPORTED AT MORGANTOWN-LENOIR AIRPORT (MRN) LOCATED 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THE ACCIDENT SITE. WINDS WERE OUT OF THE SOUTHEAST AT 4 KNOTS.

A GOPRO 4 VIDEO CAMERA WAS RECOVERED AT THE ACCIDENT SITE. THE CAMERA RECORDED THE ENTIRE FLIGHT SEQUENCE FROM THE LEFT WING AIMED TOWARDS THE COCKPIT. EXAMINATION OF THE VIDEO CLEARLY REVEALED THE PILOT STALLING THE AIRCRAFT WHILE MAKING A RIGHT CROSS WIND TURN. THE PILOT COULD BE SEEN ADDING RIGHT AILERON AND THEN SLOWLY TURNING THE YOKE BACK TO THE LEFT WHILE ADDING FULL RIGHT RUDDER. THIS IS ALSO KNOWN AS A CROSS-CONTROLLED STALL. AS THE AIRCRAFT ENTERS A RIGHT NOSE DOWN SPIN THE PILOT CAN BE SEEN TRYING TO DISENGAGE THE ?REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT? PIN WITH HIS RIGHT HAND IN ORDER TO FIRE THE BALLISTIC RECOVERY SYSTEM (BRS) PARACHUTE. AS THE AIRCRAFT DESCENDS YOU CAN HEAR THE ENGINE RPM INCREASING. THE PILOT THEN RELEASES THE YOKE WITH HIS LEFT HAND AND USES BOTH HANDS TO FIRE THE BRS JUST AS THE AIRCRAFT ENTERS THE TREE CANOPY. YOU HEAR A LOUD BANG WHEN THE BRS FIRES, HOWEVER THE AIRCRAFT WAS ALREADY TOO LOW FOR THE PARACHUTE TO FULLY DEPLOY. THIS IS ALSO CONFIRMED WITH THE WITNESS STATEMENT, ?I HEARD THE ENGINE REV AND THEN A LOUD POP AS THE AIRCRAFT CRASHED INTO THE TREES?.

## 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 ERA16LA067](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA16LA067), Dec 13, 2015: Golden Circle Air T Bird II (N92744), Lenoir, NC, destroyed. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain airspeed and a coordinated turn in the traffic pattern, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and entering an aerodynamic stall and…

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.