- Date
- August 27, 1993, 16:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Cocoa, FL
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N693KAKeuthan Buccaneer II
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 30, 1994
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19930827031509A
- Case key
- 37388
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
Failure of maintenance personnel to properly reinstall a bolt and nut in the elevator control linkage, which resulted in a disconnect of the linkage and loss of elevator control.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The aircraft had just been repaired after receiving tornado damage. This repair included removal and replacement of the elevator control tube. The pilot taxied to the runway for the purpose of a test flight. All flight control checks appeared normal. After lift-off, the pilot intended to level off at 5 to 10 feet, then touch down again. However, after the airplane became airborne, he lost elevator control, and the aircraft climbed steeply to 50 to 75 feet. The pilot then reduced power, the aircraft's nose dropped, and the aircraft descended. With no elevator control, the pilot was unable to arrest the descent, and the aircraft impacted the ground. A post-crash examination revealed that a bolt and nut were missing from the elevator control linkage, which allowed the linkage to become disconnected.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N693KA
- Reported as
- Keuthan Buccaneer II (BUCCANEER)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- B2B-K025
- Engine
- AMW 250-3C3, 95 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- Keuthan, Charles J.
- Registered owner
- Keuthan, Charles J.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- AAIP · May 28, 1993
- Departed
- COI
- Airport
- COI · Merritt Island, runway 11, 3,600 × 75 ft, asphalt
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
- 22
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 740 total · 35 in this make and model · 680 as pilot in command · 65 in the last 90 days · 25 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 70° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 8,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- TIX, 11 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.