# NTSB DEN00LA152: Rosenbarger Lancair IV, N494R, Artesia, NM, August 15, 2000 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 15, 2000, 10:00 local (16:00 UTC) - Place: Artesia, NM - Coordinates: 32.839942, -104.429977 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.8399&lon=-104.4300&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Initial climb](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/350) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report March 2, 2001 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 50016 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=DEN00LA152 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/50016/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=50016 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/DEN00LA152 ## Probable cause Failure by the pilot in command to maintain control of the aircraft during initial climb following takeoff. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, takeoff - initial climb - aircraft control - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - In flight collision with terrain/water, takeoff - initial climb ## Analysis During initial climb following takeoff, the aircraft swerved right. Neither pilot was successful in correcting the swerve and the aircraft impacted the ground 150 feet right of the runway. Wind at the time was 10 degrees right of the runway at seven knots. An examination of the aircraft by an FAA airworthiness inspector following the accident reveled no evidence of preimpact failure or malfunction. ## Factual narrative On August 15, 2000, at 1000 mountain daylight time, a homebuilt Rosenbarger Lancair IV, N494R, sustained substantial damage when it collided with terrain, at Artesia, New Mexico. The private pilot in command and the airline transport/flight instructor certificated safety pilot, occupying the other pilot seat, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The flight was operating under Title 14 CFR Part 91. The flight had originated from Roswell, New Mexico, and a takeoff was being conducted from runway 12 at Artesia, with the recorded wind being from 130 degrees magnetic heading at 7 knots. According to the pilot, he kept the airplane on runway centerline during the takeoff roll and upon liftoff the aircraft entered a steep right bank about 20 feet above the ground. Neither he nor the other pilot were successful in correcting the turn and the aircraft impacted the ground about 150 feet right of the runway. The landing gear collapsed and the wings broke at the wing root. The aircraft came to rest in an upright position. An airworthiness inspector from the Federal Aviaton Administration office in Albuquerque, New Mexico examined the aircraft. The examination provided no evidence of system and/or structural failure or malfunction prior to impact. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N494R](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N494R), registered now, S/N LIV-172, built 1995 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: ROSENBARGER LANCAIR IV - Registry model: [Rosenbarger/Goldsborough LANCAIR IV](https://openairdocs.org/model/rosenbarger-goldsborough-lancair-iv) (registry code 056019X) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG](https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (registry code 99999) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: LIV172 - Airframe hours: 60 - Engines: Continental TSIO550B2 350 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Part 91 - Registered owner: James P. Johns - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Annual, March 19, 2000, 15 hours before - Departed: ATS, ARTESIA, NM - Destination: ROW, ROSWELL, NM - Airport: ATS, Artesia Municipal, runway 12, 5,399 × 150 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 77; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 2, valid medical--no waivers/lim.; seat: left; flight hours: 349 total, 20 in this make and model, 19 in the last 90 days, 16 in the last 30 days, 1 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 130° at 7 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 84 °F, dew point 54 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: ATS, 1 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20000815010929A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000815010929A), Aug 15, 2000: Amtr LANCAIRIV, Artesia, NM, Substantial damage. (-23) On August 15, 2000, at 1000 mountain daylight time, a homebuilt rosengurger Lancair iv, N494R, sustained substantial damage when it departed the side of… ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 14, 2000, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=50016. 2.9 MB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1/2 (item 1, .PDF, 2.8 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40394739&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1%2F2-Redacted.PDF - Supplement E (item 2, .PDF, 118 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40394740&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Supplement%20E-Redacted.PDF 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. --- 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.