# Accident 20231017016939A: Dehavilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A, Greeley, CO, October 17, 2023 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: October 17, 2023, 14:30 local time - Place: Greeley, CO - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Takeoff: Climb Out - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 40.4247° N, 104.6379° W: From the FAA - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.4247&lon=-104.6379&mi=10 - Aircraft: N41DH, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N41DH) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Dehavilland TIGER MOTH DH 82A (registry code 2801002, https://openairdocs.org/model/dehavilland-tiger-moth-dh-82a) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Dehav ENG GIPSY MAJOR (registry code 20004, https://openairdocs.org/engine/dehav-eng-gipsy-major) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: DEHAVILLAND TIGER MOTH DH 82A - Reported engine: GYPSY MAJOR 1 - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Other injuries: 0 - Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot, flight instructor - Pilot flight hours: 3,854 total, 18 in this make and model, 89 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN24LA015](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN24LA015) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20231017016939A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. PILOT STATED AWOS WINDS PRIOR TO TAXI WERE VARIABLE AT 4, AND DA WAS 7294. PILOT HAD NOTICED TRAFFIC USING RWY 35 DURING PRE-FLIGHT PREPARATIONS AND THOUGHT THAT WAS ODD GIVEN THE WINDS. PILOT STATED THE MAJORITY OF THE WINDSOCKS SEEMED TO BE FAVORING RWY 17 OR 10 AT THE TIME. THE PILOT ELECTED TO DEPART ON 10 AND TAXIED TO THE RUNUP AREA. A NORMAL RUNUP WAS CONDUCTED, DURING WHICH THE PILOT HEARD AN AIRCRAFT CALLING A 10 MILE STRAIGHT-IN, WHICH HE ASSUMED IT WAS FLYING AN INSTRUMENT APPROACH TO RWY 35. THE PILOT CLEARED THE AREA LOOKING FOR ANY TRAFFIC, CHECKED THE RWY 10 APPROACH END WINDSOCK NOTING THAT IT WAS SHOWING A SLIGHT TAIL-WIND. HOWEVER, PILOT STATED ALL THE OTHER WINDSOCKS SEEN FURTHER DOWN THE RUNWAY INDICATED THAT THE WINDS FAVORED 10 OR 17. THE PILOT DEPARTED RUNWAY 10. PILOT STATED THAT RPM AND OIL PRESSURE LOOKED GOOD ON THE INITIAL ROLL AND THE AIRPLANE ACCELERATED AND BECAME AIRBORNE FASTER THAN EXPECTED. PILOT ACCELERATED TO 60 MPH AND THE AND STATED AIRCRAFT CLIMBED WELL. ROUGHLY HALF-WAY DOWN THE RUNWAY, THE PILOT ELECTED TO DO AN EARLY RIGHT TURN OUT TO AVOID ANY POTENTIAL CONFLICT WITH THE TRAFFIC THAT HE THOUGHT WAS ON FINAL FOR RWY 35. THE AIRCRAFT CONTINUED TO CLIMB IN THE TURN SOUTHBOUND, BUT SHORTLY AFTER ROLLING OUT AS HE APPROACHED THE ROW OF HANGARS ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE RUNWAY, THE PILOT NOTICED THE SLATS ON THE UPPER WING OF THE AIRCRAFT START TO FLUTTER, INDICATING THAT AIRSPEED WAS SLOW. THE PILOT LEVELED OFF TO GAIN AIRSPEED AND NOTED A WINDSOCK ON A HANGAR NEAR THE CENTER OF THE FIELD WAS SHOWING WINDS OUT OF THE SOUTH. THE PILOT CONTINUED IN THAT DIRECTION RATHER THAN TURNING BACK TO RUNWAY HEADING, THINKING THAT WOULD PROVIDE THE BEST OPPORTUNITY TO REGAIN SOME AIRSPEED. THE PILOT FLEW LEVEL OVER THE FIRST ROW OF HANGARS, AND THE SLATS CAME HARD OUT INDICATING THE STALL. THE PILOT PUT THE NOSE DOWN AND CHECKED THE THROTTLE WAS FULL FORWARD. THE PILOT ACCEPTED A SLIGHT DECENT TO MAINTAIN FLYING SPEED. THE PILOT STATED THE AIRCRAFT FELT LIKE IT WAS MAX-PERFORMING, RIGHT ON THE EDGE OF THE STALL, BUT THE DESCENT RATE SEEMED TO INCREASE LIKE IT WAS BEING FORCED DOWN. THE PILOT HEADED TOWARD THE ROOFLINE OF A HANGAR ON THE SOUTH SIDE AND KNEW AN IMPACT WAS IMMINENT. THE PILOT ROLLED RIGHT WING DOWN AND KICKED HARD-RIGHT RUDDER SO THAT THE LEFT WING WOULD IMPACT THE SIDE OF THE HANGAR AND THE RIGHT WING ON THE GROUND RATHER THAN HITTING THE TOP EDGE OF THE HANGAR. THE WINGS CUSHIONED MOST OF THE IMPACT. WHEN THE MAIN-GEAR CONTACTED THE GROUND, THE AIRCRAFT WENT SLOWLY UP ON IT’S NOSE AND OVER ONTO IT’S BACK. ## 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 CEN24LA015](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN24LA015), Oct 17, 2023: Dehavilland Tiger Moth DH 82A (N41DH), Greeley, CO, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot’s decision to turn out early during the initial climb and failure to maintain adequate airspeed/angle-of-attack, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and impact with airport hangars.… 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.