# NTSB MIA02LA038: Byrd KR-2S, N366KR, Linden, NC, December 1, 2001 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: December 1, 2001, 17:05 local (22:05 UTC) - Place: Linden, NC - Coordinates: 35.250308, -78.739952 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.2503&lon=-78.7400&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Approach](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/500) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report June 4, 2002 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FSDO FAA - NTSB case key (mKey): 53857 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=MIA02LA038 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/53857/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA02LA038 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to correct a condition where visual contact with the terrain was lost due to sunshine glare, resulting in collision with a tree during final approach for landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - In flight collision with object, approach - vfr pattern - final approach - visual lookout - restricted (contributing factor) - became lost/disoriented - not corrected, pilot in command (cause) - object - tree(s) ## Analysis According to the pilot, upon his return to his home field, the wind favored using runway 22, but the sun was located in just the right spot to blind anyone flying in that direction. The pilot continued the approach although his visibility was severely restricted, and at about 100 feet from the runway, the left wing collided with a tree top and spun the aircraft to the ground. The pilot was not injured, but the aircraft was destroyed. ## Factual narrative On December 1, 2001, at about 1705 eastern standard time, an experimental Byrd KR-2S, N366KR, registered and operated by a private individual as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight, crashed while on final approach for landing in the vicinity of Linden, North Carolina. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The aircraft was destroyed and the private-rated pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight departed Raleigh-Durham about 20 minutes before the accident. According to the pilot, while on final approach to runway 22, the sun's rays hit his canopy at just the right angle to blind his vision. At about 100 feet before the runway, the left wing tip collided with a tree top and spun the aircraft to the terrain. The airplane collided with the terrain in a vertical, nose down attitude, resulting in the fuselage breaking up at about the instrument panel and the wing to separate. According to an FAA inspector, the sun's obscuring of the pilot's vision prevented him from sensing that the aircraft was drifting left of runway centerline as he approached the threshold of runway 22. The left wing struck a tree, causing the aircraft to impact the terrain. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N366KR](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N366KR-2002-02-21), registration cancelled 2002-02-21, S/N 366, built 1996 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Byrd KR-2S - Registry model: [Byrd Gene KR-2S](https://openairdocs.org/model/byrd-gene-kr-2s) (registry code 05603WY) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Subaru ALL MDLS A/B](https://openairdocs.org/engine/subaru-all-mdls-a-b) (registry code 59050, 4 cycle) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane, amateur-built - Serial number: 366 - Airframe hours: 49 - Engines: Subaru EA81-981 98 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Destroyed - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Registered owner: Melvin G.Byrd - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special) - Last inspection: Annual, September 24, 2001, 11 hours before - Departed: 5W5, Raleigh-Durham, NC - Destination: 9NC2, Linden, NC - Airport: 9NC2, Flyers Airstrip, runway 22, 2,800 × 60 ft, grass/turf ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 65; injuries: minor; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review September 2, 2001; seat: left; flight hours: 1,000 total, 49 in this make and model, 950 as pilot in command ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 300° at 4 knots - Visibility: 9 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 72 °F, dew point 54 °F - Altimeter: 30.10 inHg - Observed at: FAY, 14 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 20011201031339A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20011201031339A), Dec 1, 2001: Linden, NC, No damage. (-23) Approaching runway toward the setting sun, glare from sun obstructed pilots view. Lost sight of runway (due to glare) and drifted left of center and left… 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.