# Accident 20200703018249A: Lankenau Kip F SOPWITH TYPE 9400, Van Alstyne, TX, July 3, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 3, 2020, 09:56 local time
- Place: Van Alstyne, TX
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.4105° N, 96.5706° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.4105&lon=-96.5706&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5539, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N5539) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Lankenau Kip F SOPWITH TYPE 9400 (registry code 05638LQ, https://openairdocs.org/model/lankenau-kip-f-sopwith-type-9400) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG (registry code 99999, https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: LANKENAU KIP F SOPWITH TYPE 9400
- Reported engine: AMA/EXPR UNKNOWN ENG
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 1
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 921 total, 20 in this make and model, 6 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN20LA259](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN20LA259) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200703018249A

## Narrative

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

ON JULY 3, 2020, AT 0956 CDT, AN EXPERIMENTAL AMATEUR BUILT, LANKENAU KIP F, SOPWITH TYPE 9400, S/N 5539, WHILE ON A MAINTENANCE TEST FLIGHT WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT.  THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT BAYLIE AIRPORT (66XS), VAN ALSTYNE, TX.  WHILE ON THE MAINTENANCE TEST FLIGHT, THE AIRCRAFT LOST AILERON CONTROL.  THE PILOT DECIDED TO MAKE AN EMERGENCY LANDING IN AN OPEN FIELD, APPROXIMATELY 5 MILES NORTH OF WEST MINSTER, TX.,(34 DEG. 24 MIN 25N) (96 DEG. 30 MIN  09W).  THE AIRCRAFT CROSSED A TREE LINE WHICH EXTENDED APPROXIMATELY 65 FEET IN HEIGHT, AND IMPACTED THE GROUND NOSE FIRST.  VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS (VMC) PREVAILED AND THERE WAS NO FLIGHT PLAN FILED.  THE AIRCRAFT SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.  THE PILOT RECEIVED MINOR ANKLE INJURY AND PASSENGER RECEIVED NO INJURIES.  THE PILOT HOLDS A COMMERCIAL, SINGLE ENGINE LAND, MULTI-ENGINE LAND, AND INSTRUMENT AIRPLANE.  THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED AT BAYLIE AIRPORT (66XS), VAN ALSTYNE, TX) ON JULY 3, 2020 AT 0930 CDT.

## 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 CEN20LA259](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN20LA259), Jul 3, 2020: Sopwith Type 9400 (N5539), Van Alstyne, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: An inflight loss of aileron control due to movement of a control connector.

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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