- Date
- May 27, 2018, 13:30 local (17:30 UTC)
- Place
- Mint Hill, NC
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N582DFLite Flight Dragonfly
- Defining event
- Maneuvering: Aerodynamic stall/spin
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 5, 2018
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20180527015089A
- Case key
- 97345
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 exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack during a turn, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall/spin.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot reported that, while maneuvering about 1,300 ft mean sea level (about 600 ft above the ground), he initiated a 180° right turn, and about halfway through the turn, the airplane began to descend rapidly and would not respond to flight controls. The airplane struck a tree, spun to the right, and came to rest on a residential house. Postaccident examination conducted by the pilot revealed that all controls were intact and operational. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and both wings. In a written statement provided to the local police department, the pilot reported that he lost control of the airplane, and it "spiraled down" and then struck a tree and a house. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Given the pilot's statement, it is likely that the airplane entered an aerodynamic stall/spin when the pilot exceeded the airplane's critical angle of attack during a turn.
Factual narrative
The pilot reported that, while maneuvering about 1,300 ft mean sea level (about 600 ft above ground), he initiated a 180° turn to the right when about halfway through the turn, the airplane began to descend rapidly and would not respond to flight controls. The airplane struck a tree, spun to the right, and came to rest on a residential house. Postaccident examination, conducted by the pilot, revealed that all controls were intact and operational. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and both wings. In a written statement provided to the local police department, the pilot reported that he lost control of the airplane and it "spiraled down" and then struck a tree and a house. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N582DF
- Reported as
- Lite Flight Dragonfly (NO SERIES)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 82
- Built
- 2006
- Airframe hours
- 730
- Engine
- Rotax 582UL, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Condition · September 15, 2017
- Departed
- 28A · Indian Trail, NC
- Destination
- 28A · Indian Trail, NC
- Equipment
- Airframe parachute
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
- 60
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Sport Pilot
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Sport pilot, Unknown
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 68 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.01 inHg
- Observed at
- KEQY, 10 nm away
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 28, 2018, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.8 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.