# Accident 20170404006429A: Pipistrel VIRUS SW, Micanopy, FL, April 4, 2017

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: April 4, 2017, 09:00 local time
- Place: Micanopy, FL
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 29.4653° N, 82.3750° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=29.4653&lon=-82.3750&mi=10
- Aircraft: N155CL, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N155CL-2019-06-26) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Pipistrel Doo Ajdovscina VIRUS SW (registry code 056321O, https://openairdocs.org/model/pipistrel-doo-ajdovscina-virus-sw) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Rotax 912ULS2 (registry code 55599, https://openairdocs.org/engine/rotax-912uls2) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPISTREL VIRUS SW
- Reported engine: ROTAX 912ULS2
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Airline transport
- Pilot flight hours: 12,100 total, 87 in this make and model, 85 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ERA17FA145](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA17FA145) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20170404006429A

## Narrative

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

ON APRIL 4, 2017, AT APPROXIMATELY 1307Z, N155CL, A EXPERIMENTAL VIRUS-SW, WAS FLYING IFR FROM SEBRING REGIONAL AIRPORT (SEF) TO OCONEE REGIONAL AIRPORT (CEU), WHEN IT  CRASHED IN A FIELD NEAR 21850 150TH NW AVE WHILE IN COMMUNICATION WITH JACKSONVILLE APPROACH. THE AIRCRAFT WAS CRUISING AT AROUND 8,000FT ON A NW HEADING WHEN THE AIRCRAFT ENCOUNTERED SEVERE WEATHER (THURDERSTORM/TORNADO WARNING) AROUND THE AREA OF GAINESVILLE (GNV). THE AIRCRAFT APPEARS TO HAVE ENTERED INTO THIS WEATHER CONDITION.  IN WHICH IT APPEARS THAT THE LEFT HAND WING SNAPPED AND THE PILOT LOST CONTROL AND CRASHED/DESTROYED. THE SEPARATED WING WAS FOUND ON A NEARBY FARM 4 MILES AWAY FROM THE MAIN SCENE, AT 14920 WEST HWY 318. THE WING WAS NEAR A PASTURE AND RECOVERED FROM THE FIELD.

THE PILOT, HELD AN AIRLINE TRANSPORT PILOT CERTIFICATE 2629186 (AIRPLANE MULTIENGINE LAND, AIRPLANE SINGLE ENGINE LAND, AIRPLANE SINGLE ENGINE SEA, GLIDER) AND FLIGHT ENGINEER (TURBOJET POWERED), WAS A 64-YEAR-OLD MALE. THIS PILOT REPORTED CIVIL FLIGHT EXPERIENCE THAT INCLUDED 12,100 TOTAL AND 85 HOURS IN LAST SIX MONTHS AS OF EXAM DATED 10/28/2013. THIS PILOT WAS 72 INCHES TALL AND WEIGHED 175 LBS AT THE TIME OF THE LAST EXAM. THE LAST EXAM WAS CONDUCTED BY AVIATION MEDICAL EXAMINER (AME) 21172. THIS PILOT WAS ISSUED A THIRD CLASS MEDICAL CERTIFICATE WITH THE FOLLOWING LIMITATION(S): MUST WEAR CORRECTIVE LENSES.

THIS MEDICAL CERTIFICATE EXPIRED FOR ALL CLASSES 10/31/2015. HOWEVER, THIS IS A FACTORY EXPERIMENTAL MOTORIZED GLIDER AND NO MEDICAL CERTIFICATE WAS REQUIRED FOR OPERATION.

## 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 ERA17FA145](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA17FA145), Apr 4, 2017: Pipistrel Virus SW (N155CL), Micanopy, FL, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's intentional flight into an area of known convective thunderstorm activity, which resulted in an in-flight breakup.

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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