# NTSB IAD04LA020: Taylorcraft BC, N26644, Cumberland, MD, May 8, 2004 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 8, 2004, 11:30 local (15:30 UTC) - Place: Cumberland, MD - Coordinates: 39.604721, -78.760559 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.6047&lon=-78.7606&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 2 uninjured - Status: Completed, report January 24, 2005 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 59197 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=IAD04LA020 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/59197/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD04LA020 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall into transmission lines. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of control - in flight, cruise - airspeed - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - stall - inadvertent, pilot in command - In flight collision with object, descent - uncontrolled - object - wire,transmission ## Analysis The pilot reported that while flying near his home, the airplane "experienced a downdraft and dropped 600 feet." The airplane "fell" into transmission lines, and became entangled, upside down, about 25 feet above the ground. A photograph of the scene revealed that the right wing was bent upward, about 90 degrees at the wing root, and another 90 degrees to the right, about 2 feet from the initial bend. The accident site was on a mountain slope. The nearest reporting airport, about 40 miles to the southeast, recorded winds of 7 knots about 30 minutes before the accident. An airport about 50 miles to the east recoded winds at 11, gusting to 16 knots about 20 minutes after the accident. An airport about 55 miles to the west recoded winds at 5 knots about 20 minutes after the accident. The fire chief who responded to the scene did not recall any winds. ## Factual narrative On May 8, 2004, about 1130 eastern daylight time, a Taylorcraft BC, N26644, was substantially damaged when it impacted power lines near Cumberland, Maryland. The certificated private pilot and the passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the flight, which departed Mexico Farms Airport (1W3), Cumberland, Maryland. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. According to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, the pilot took off and was heading easterly, toward Irons Mountain, when the airplane became entangled in power lines. In lieu of making a statement to the FAA inspector, the pilot handed him a newspaper article, which he characterized as his statement. According to the newspaper article, the pilot reported that, about 1,500 feet, "We hit a downdraft and the plane dropped 625 feet just like that. It just kept falling." The airplane "fell" toward two sets of transmission lines, and a landing gear caught on one of the wires. The airplane then came to rest upside down, suspended about 25 feet above the ground. The pilot further reported, "We were close to home and my son came up almost immediately. He got some rope on one wing and tied the other end to his truck to stabilize the plane. The wind was blowing pretty hard." A photograph of the airplane, hanging from a wire by one wheel, revealed that the right wing was bent about 90 degrees upward at the wing root, and another 90 degrees to the right, about 2 feet from the first bend. The pilot and his passenger were suspended in the airplane until about 1345, when power company and rescue personnel removed them. According to a written statement subsequently submitted by the pilot, the purpose of the flight was to take his grandson for a ride. Sometime after departure from Mexico Farms, while at an altitude of 1,600 feet (above mean sea level), the airplane encountered a downdraft and "dropped 600 feet to the high-tension wires," then "glided to a stop." The pilot also reported that he had flown the route many times and had never experienced a similar downdraft. The pilot also stated that the airplane received its last annual inspection on January 17, 1998, that he last received a flight review on May 27, 2002, and that he had obtained his latest medical certificate (no class noted) on March 28, 2004. According to FAA records, the pilot obtained his first and only third class medical certificate on February 28, 1986. When asked by the FAA inspector to provide records of his flight reviews, the pilot could not provide any. The weather reported at Winchester Regional Airport (OKV), Winchester, Virginia, about 40 nautical miles southeast, at 1100, included clear skies, and winds from 120 degrees true, at 7 knots. The weather reported at Hagerstown Regional Airport (HGR), Hagerstown, Maryland, about 50 miles to the east, at 1153, included clear skies, and winds from 150 degrees true, at 11, gusting to 16 knots. The weather reported at Morgantown Municipal Airport (MGW), Morgantown, West Virginia, about 55 miles to the west, at 1153, included clear skies, and winds from 140 degrees true, at 5 knots. The fire chief who responded to the accident reported that he could not recall any wind blowing that day. He also stated that the ropes were used to stabilize the airplane so the occupants could be extricated. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N26644](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N26644), registered now, S/N 1986, built 1944 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Taylorcraft BC - Registry model: [Taylorcraft BC](https://openairdocs.org/model/taylorcraft-bc) (registry code 8850302) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental A&C65 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c65-series) (registry code 17003, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 472508 - Airframe hours: 1180 - Engines: Continental A-65-8 65 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, January 17, 1998, 40 hours before - Departed: 1W3, Cumberland, MD - Airport: 1W3, Mexico Farms Airport ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 66; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, expired; last flight review May 27, 2002; seat: left; flight hours: 2,000 total, 1,500 in this make and model, 2 in the last 90 days, 2 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 120° at 7 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 63 °F, dew point 46 °F - Altimeter: 30.35 inHg - Observed at: OKV, 40 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 20040508020929A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040508020929A), May 8, 2004: Tcraft BC, Cumberland, MD, Substantial damage. (-23) Pilot stated that on climb out the wind "pushed the plane down until it hit the power wires." The aircraft struck the high tension power lines… ## Other investigations on N26644 (1) 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. - [NTSB IAD71FIG17](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/IAD71FIG17-158451), Oct 17, 1970: Taylorcraft BC-65 (N26644), Fort Ashby, WV, destroyed 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.