- Date
- September 5, 2008, 20:00 local (Sep 6, 2008, 00:00 UTC)
- Place
- Cleveland, GA
- Injuries
- 1 serious, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N6152NQuicksilver MXL II
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 22, 2009
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20080905849189A
- Case key
- 68879
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 improper approach to the runway resulting in his being unable to flare prior to a hard landing.
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 non-certificated pilot and his passenger took off from the turf strip in the experimental light sport Quicksilver MXL II, and flew for a short time before returning for a landing. The airplane touched down normally, and the pilot intentionally lifted off again. The pilot climbed to an altitude of approximately 50 feet above the runway, where he pitched the nose down to land again. The airplane attitude and flight path was "too steep to flare," and the pilot was unable to prevent the airplane from impacting the runway, which resulted in substantial airplane damage. The tubular frame of the airplane was fractured and bent in multiple locations. The pilot, seated in the left seat, was uninjured. His passenger, seated in the right seat, incurred serious injuries. The winds were calm, and daylight conditions existed at the time of the accident. The pilot did not report any mechanical problems on the accident flight.
Factual narrative
The non-certificated pilot and his passenger took off from the turf strip in the experimental light sport Quicksilver MXL II, and flew for a short time before returning for a landing. The airplane touched down normally, and the pilot intentionally lifted off again. The pilot climbed to an altitude of approximately 50 feet above the runway, where he pitched the nose down to land again. The airplane attitude and flight path was "too steep to flare," and the pilot was unable to prevent the airplane from impacting the runway, which resulted in substantial airplane damage. The tubular frame of the airplane was fractured and bent in multiple locations. The pilot, seated in the left seat, was uninjured. His passenger, seated in the right seat, incurred serious injuries. The winds were calm, and daylight conditions existed at the time of the accident. The pilot did not report any mechanical problems on the accident flight.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N6152N
- Reported as
- Quicksilver MXL II (Sport)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 240
- Airframe hours
- 40
- Engine
- Rotax 582, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental light sport (Special)
- Last inspection
- Unknown · October 7, 2007
- Departed
- 0GE5 · Cleveland, GA
- Destination
- 0GE5 · Cleveland, GA
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- 0GE5 · Mountain Airpark, runway 36, 2,500 × 200 ft, grass/turf
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
- 54
- Injuries
- None
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 400 total · 400 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 10° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 82 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.84 inHg
- Observed at
- PDK, 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.