- Date
- October 10, 1998, 17:11 local (21:11 UTC)
- Place
- Apopka, FL
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N741WBW.S. Bowers, Jr. RV-4
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 16, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19981010028769A
- Case key
- 44145
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed while performing aerobatics which resulted in the lost of control and a stall/spin. A contributing factor was the low altitude at which the maneuver was performed.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
Witnesses located in the immediate vicinity of the accident site observed the airplane as it entered a loop type maneuver at a low altitude. As the airplane entered the bottom of the maneuver, proper airspeed was not maintained, the airplane became erratic, and collided with the ground in a nose low attitude. According to witnesses, the engine continued to operate throughout the maneuver. The fuel selector was found in the on position, and the fuel tanks appeared to be ruptured from impact. Examination of the airframe and engine failed to disclose a mechanial problem with the airplane. The toxicology examinations performed on the pilot were negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, ethanol, and drugs.
Factual narrative
On October 10, 1998, at 1711 eastern daylight time, an experimental homebuilt RV-4 airplane, N741WB, collided with the ground near Apopka, Florida, while performing an aerobatics maneuver. The personal flight was operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91, with no flight plan filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. Examination of the airplane at the accident site revealed substantial airframe damage. The private pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The flight departed Bob White Field, in Zellwood, Florida, at 1515.
Witnesses located in the immediate vicinity of the accident site observed the airplane as it entered a loop at a low altitude. As the airplane entered the bottom of the maneuver, the airplane became erratic, partially spun, and collided with the ground in a nose down attitude. According to witnesses, the engine continued to operate throughout the maneuver. Strong fuel fumes existed at the accident site following the impact.
Examination of the accident site by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector revealed the airplane fuselage, wing assembly, and empennage were attached to the airframe. Debris from the airplane was distributed evenly around the impact zone in a 360-degree pattern. The airplane was found in a flat attitude with the wing assembly leading edges bent upwards approximately 30 degrees. The fuselage was fractured on the left side aft of the main wing, all control cables were intact, the fuel selector was found in the on position, and the fuel tanks appeared to be ruptured from impact. Examination of the airframe and engine assembly failed to disclose a mechanical problem.
The toxicological examinations performed on the pilot were negative for carbon monoxide, cyanide, ethanol, or drugs.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N741WB
- Reported as
- W.S. Bowers, Jr. RV-4
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 262
- Airframe hours
- 267
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Robert Christopher Oleksa
- Registered owner
- Xray 78, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 21, 1997 · 46 hours before
- Departed
- X61 · Zellwood, FL
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 21
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 132 total · 11 in this make and model · 20 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 320° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 88 °F, dew point 68 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ORL, 15 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.