# Accident 20200911013949A: Navion NAVION B, Van Nuys, CA, September 11, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 11, 2020, 15:01 local time
- Place: Van Nuys, CA
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 34.1919° N, 118.4892° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=34.1919&lon=-118.4892&mi=10
- Aircraft: N37C, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N37C-2021-06-10) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Navion NAVION B (registry code 6150112, https://openairdocs.org/model/navion-navion-b) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental IO-550 series (registry code 17042, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-550-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: NAVION NAVION B
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR IO-550 SERIES
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 2
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor
- Pilot flight hours: 19,001 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB WPR20LA303](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20LA303) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200911013949A

## Narrative

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

ON SEPTEMBER 11, 2020, AT 1501 PACIFIC DAYLIGHT TIME (PDT), A NAVION B AIRCRAFT, N37C, IMPACTED A PARKING LOT WITHIN THE CITY OF VAN NUYS, CALIFORNIA. THE PILOT AND ONE PASSENGER WERE FATALLY INJURED, AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED BY IMPACT FORCES AND FIRE. THE AIRCRAFT WAS OPERATING UNDER TITLE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (CFR) PART 91 AS A PERSONAL FLIGHT, UNDER VISUAL FLIGHT RULES (VFR) FROM VAN NUYS AIRPORT (KVNY), VAN NUYS, CALIFORNIA TO SANTA YNEZ AIRPORT (KIZA), SANTA YNEZ, CALIFORNIA.

ATC DATA SHOWS THAT THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED KVNY RUNWAY 16R, REACHED AN UNVERIFIED ALTITUDE, PRIOR TO TURNING RIGHT CROSSWIND AND RAPIDLY DESCENDING. THE AIRCRAFT IMPACTED A PARKING LOT LOCATED NEAR 7011 HAYVENHURST AVE, VAN NUYS, CALIFORNIA 91406. THE PARKING LOT AND THREE VEHICLES WERE DAMAGED FROM THE COLLISION AND SUBSEQUENT FIRE; THERE WERE NO OTHER INJURIES.

INDICATIONS FROM THE WRECKAGE (E.G., POSITION AND SPREAD) INDICATE THAT THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED NEARLY PERPENDICULAR TO THE GROUND WITH A HIGH VERTICAL DESCENT RATE.

THREE WITNESS STATE THAT THEY HEARD A ?POP? AND SAW THE AIRCRAFT BANK ?HARD TO THE RIGHT? PRIOR TO DESCENT.

WEATHER OBSERVATIONS FROM VAN NUYS AIRPORT INDICATED SMOKE AND HAZE AT THE TIME OF DEPARTURE.

THERE ARE NO INDICATIONS THAT THE PILOT MADE OR ATTEMPTED TO DECLARE AN EMERGENCY TO ATC.

THIS DOCUMENT MAY BE AMENDED AS THE INVESTIGATION PROGRESSES.

## 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 WPR20LA303](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR20LA303), Sep 11, 2020: Navion B (N37C), Van Nuys, CA, destroyed, 2 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane during an abrupt turn after takeoff at a low altitude, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

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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