ERA15LA044

The aircraft, which was one of nine prototypes developed to support remote populations, included a kit-built dune buggy equipped with a roll cage and racing seats that could be used to drive to remote sites. The dune buggy was connected to a deployable, powered parachute that had a fabric wing with cells that filled with air to provide lift over obstacles such as jungle canopies. The aircraft was directionally controlled in the air by foot pedals and/or a fly-by-wire servo controlled through the dune buggy's steering wheel, which could be turned off if needed. The pilot reported that the takeoff was "normal" and that he then climbed the aircraft to about 500 ft. While in level flight, the aircraft "all of sudden, and sharply" turned right with no pilot inputs. The pilot tried turning the aircraft left, but it continued to spiral right. He thought about turning off the fly-by-wire servo but realized that the servo wasn't the problem and wanted to keep using it to help rudder pedal inputs. As the aircraft passed through 180 degrees of turn, the pilot realized it was coming down over trees. He had completely lost aircraft control but found that adding power added lift to the left side of the parachute and that reducing power reduced the lift. At one point, the parachute was parallel with the dune buggy, which is consistent with a cell blowout. The pilot stated that he believed that, at some point, the cell pressurized briefly, which straightened the aircraft and allowed it to avoid the trees before hitting the ground. Once the aircraft hit the ground, the fuel tank ruptured, which resulted in a fire that consumed the parachute and precluded further failure mode documentation.

On October 21 2014, about 0930 eastern daylight time, an experimental research and development ITEC Maverick (powered parachute), N356MV, was destroyed in a postcrash ground fire following an inflight parachute malfunction at Marion County Airport (X35), Dunnellon, Florida. The private pilot was seriously injured and the passenger sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the local demonstration flight which was operating under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.According to the pilot, ITEC Inc. is a non-profit that develops tools and systems for emerging/frontier areas. An example besides the Maverick would be a backpack dental suite. The role of the company was not to sell products to make money, but to find solutions to assist people and governments. The accident aircraft was one of nine prototypes that been built, with deployments to Canada and Australia, and plans for Indonesia, Ecuador and Africa. Following the accident, all Mavericks were grounded until the accident cause could be found and correction(s) implemented. The concept of the Maverick involved driving a ground vehicle as far as possible to reach customers, then have the capability to hop over obstacles such as jungle canopies. The project was 7 years in development. The Maverick was a kit-built dune buggy, equipped with roll cage and racing seats, connected to a deployable powered parachute system. The vehicle was approved by two separate entities: the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for the flying part, and the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles for the ground vehicle part. The aircraft was held aloft by a fabric wing that would fill with air. The wing shape was elliptical, which produced relatively high lift and a higher airspeed than would a square-shaped wing. However, the elliptical-shaped wing required perfect rigging, and had a lower margin of safety error than would a square wing. The pilot noted that if the project continues, there is consideration for changing the parachute to the square-wing type. Airborne, the Maverick is controlled by both, or separately, foot controls (pedals) and by a fly-by-wire servo controlled through the dune buggy's steering wheel, the latter of which can be turned off if needed. The pilot further noted that he had about 1,000 hours flying powered parachutes, with about 200 hours in the Maverick. On the morning of the accident, the pilot first solo'd another pilot. That pilot completed 10 takeoffs and landings, and after which, because it was a beautiful day, the accident pilot decided to give rides. He put a passenger in the back seat, and made a "normal" takeoff, climbing the aircraft to about 500 feet. As the aircraft was flying in level flight, it "all of a sudden, sharply" turned to the right with no control inputs. The pilot tried turning it to the left, but it still continued to the right. He thought about turning off the fly-by-wire servo,but realized that it wasn't the problem and wanted to keep using it to help rudder pedal inputs. As the aircraft passed 180 degrees of turn, the pilot realized it was coming down over trees. He had completely lost control, but did find that adding power added lift to the left side of the parachute and reducing power reduced the lift. At one point the parachute was parallel with the dune buggy, which would have been consistent with a cell blowout; and the pilot felt that he only had 1/3 of the wing. At another point, the pilot believes the cell pressurized briefly, which straightened the aircraft, allowing it to avoid the trees before hitting the ground. According to a witness, he saw the aircraft taxi and climb out, and after seeing they were "normal," stopped watching. He later heard a noise that was "not normal," and saw the aircraft in a descending spiral. He heard the engine go to full throttle, saw the aircraft briefly level off, then continue a "gradual spin" to the ground. Once the aircraft hit the ground, the fuel tank ruptured, which then resulted in a fire that consumed the parachute and partially consumed the dune buggy.