# Accident 20200724011529A: Phillips Michael G VANS RV-8, Tehachapi, CA, July 24, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 24, 2020, 11:59 local time
- Place: Tehachapi, CA
- Airport: Tehachapi Municipal
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Other, Specify
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.1361° N, 118.4464° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.1361&lon=-118.4464&mi=10
- Aircraft: N138PM, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N138PM-2021-06-05) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Phillips Michael G VANS RV-8 (registry code 05637FK, https://openairdocs.org/model/phillips-michael-g-vans-rv-8) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Lycoming AEIO-360-A1E (registry code 41851, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-aeio-360-a1e) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PHILLIPS MICHAEL G VANS RV-8
- Reported engine: LYCOMING AEIO-360-A1E
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 300 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR20LA237](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20LA237) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200724011529A

## Narrative

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

ON JULY 24, 2020, AT 1159 PDT, N138PM, AN EXPERIMENTAL, OPERATING AMATEUR BUILT RV-8, STALLED/SPUN AND IMPACTED THE ROOF OF A COMMERCIAL BUILDING AT THE TEHACHAPI MUNICIPAL AIRPORT, KTSP, IN TEHACHAPI, CA. N138PM DEPARTED FROM THE WHITEMAN AIRPORT, KWHP, PACOIMA, CA, AT APPROXIMATELY 1130 PDT. THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED WITH ANOTHER AIRCRAFT, IN 'LOOSE FORMATION' FOR KTSP.

ACCIDENT AIRCRAFT REPORTEDLY ENTERED STRAIGHT IN FOR RUNWAY 29, WITH THE SECOND AIRCRAFT FOLLOWING. UPON TOUCHDOWN, WITNESSES OBSERVED ACCIDENT AIRCRAFT OSCILLATE BETWEEN ITS TAILWHEEL AND MAIN LANDING GEAR, BEFORE IT TIPPED UP ONTO THE LEFT MAIN GEAR. THE ACCIDENT AIRCRAFT TURNED TOWARD THE RIGHT EDGE OF THE RUNWAY, AND APPEARED TO SLOW. ACCIDENT PILOT DECLARED A 'GO AROUND' OVER THE CTAF. THE WITNESSES OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT ACCELERATE ABRUPTLY, AND HEARD THE ENGINE 'COUGH A NUMBER OF TIMES' BEFORE RUNNING SMOOTHLY. WITNESSES OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT LIFT OFF QUICKLY, THEN MADE A SLOW TURN TOWARD A LEFT CROSSWIND, WITH THE NOSE OF THE ACCIDENT AIRCRAFT AT AN 'ALARMINGLY HIGH' ANGLE OF ATTACK. WITHIN SECONDS, THE AIRCRAFT DISAPPEARED BELOW THE TREE LINE, AND THE IMPACT WAS HEARD BY THE WITNESSES.

## 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 WPR20LA237](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20LA237), Jul 24, 2020: Vans Vans RV-8 (N138PM), Tehachapi, CA, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain airspeed and his exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall at too low of an altitude to recover.

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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