CEN18FA186

The private pilot departed for a local personal flight in the experimental airplane that he had built and flown for about 500 hours. A witness saw the airplane flying about 50 feet above trees with the nose oscillating up and down. According to the witness, the engine was not "making any strange noises [and had a] steady tone." The airplane struck trees and impacted the ground about 0.75 mile south of the airport. Postaccident examination of the airframe, engine, and propeller revealed no discrepancies or anomalies that would have prevented normal operation.The damage to the propeller blades was consistent with rotation at impact. An autopsy of the pilot was not performed. According to the toxicology report, no ethanol or drugs were detected. Given the oscillations described by the witness, it is likely that the pilot did not maintain airplane control following the takeoff.

The airplane was constructed by the pilot from a kit and was issued a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certificate of airworthiness on June 21, 2007. It was powered by a Continental C85-12 engine, serial number 26363-6-12, rated at 85 horsepower, driving a Sensenich 2-blade, fixed pitch, wooden propeller, model number 68X54R. The Hobbs meter on the instrument panel indicated 506.5 hours. On May 22, 2018, about 0930 central daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Zenith 601, N622DP, collided with trees and impacted terrain after takeoff from Bolivar Municipal Airport (M17), Bolivar, Missouri. The private pilot was fatally injured, and the airplane was destroyed. The airplane was owned by the pilot who operated it under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions were reported, and no flight plan had been filed. The local personal flight originated about 0925. According to one witness, the airplane was flying "low above the trees," and the nose "going up and down about 50 feet above the trees." The witness reported that the engine wasn't "making any strange noises [and had a] steady tone." The accident site was located about 0.75 mile south of M17 between the 16th and 18th holes at the Silo Ridge Golf and Country Club. An autopsy of the pilot was not performed. The pilot's death certificate listed the cause of death as blunt force trauma. FAA's Bioaeronautical Science Research Laboratory, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, performed toxicology testing, and no ethanol or drugs were detected. Cyanide and carbon monoxide testing were no performed. At 0930, the reported weather at the Springfield-Branson National Airport (SGF), Springfield, Missouri, located about 21 miles south of the accident site, was wind, calm, visibility, 85 miles, ceiling, 400 feet broken; temperature, 22°C., dew point, 21°C., and altimeter setting, 30.08 inches of mercury. The 87-year-old pilot held a private pilot certificate with an airplane single-engine land rating. He held a BasicMed certificate. The pilot reported having about 1,662 hours of flight experience of which about 507 hours were in the Zenith 601. The pilot also held three repairman experimental aircraft builder certificates. Examination of the accident site revealed evidence consistent with the airplane striking the tops of trees on a magnetic heading of about 140°, descending in a nose-down attitude, and impacting terrain. The horizontal stabilizer was twisted 180° and displayed evidence of tree strikes. The leading edge of the right wing displayed numerous indentations consistent with tree strikes. A tree branch was embedded in the right main landing gear wheel pant. Broken tree branches lay scattered on the ground around the airplane. Flight control continuity was confirmed, and the shattered wooden propeller displayed evidence consistent with rotation at impact.