WPR24FA225

The accident pilot and the pilot of a second airplane were practicing an aerobatic formation flight for an airshow within an aerobatic practice area. After completing the formation flight, the pilot of the second airplane maneuvered away from the aerobatic area while the accident pilot was conducting solo aerobatic maneuvers. The accident pilot then entered a left spin at an altitude of about 1,500 ft above ground level (agl). Upon completion of the pilot’s fifth turn during the spin maneuver, he attempted to recover the airplane at about 400 ft agl. The pilot used opposite (right) rudder to stop the rotation and relaxed the stick to neutral, which placed the airplane in a nose down dive attitude. The airplane then entered a secondary stall as it rolled and yawed to the right in a nose down attitude. As the airplane continued the dive and approached the water, the pilot maintained full aft pitch input until the airplane impacted water. Postaccident examination of the airplane and engine revealed no preimpact mechanical anomalies that could have precluded normal operation. The FAA estimates an altitude loss of approximately 500 ft for each 3-second turn during a spin maneuver in aircraft authorized for spins. Using the FAA’s estimate, 5 turns would have required a minimum of 2,500 ft agl to begin the maneuver. Instead, the pilot started the spin maneuver at 1,500 ft agl and began the spin recovery at 400 ft agl, which provided limited altitude to arrest the spin. Approximately 1 second after the recovery (following the fifth turn) the airplane entered a secondary stall likely because the spin maneuver had not been fully arrested as the pilot began to introduce aft elevator input. At the onset of the secondary stall, the pilot moved the flight stick to the full aft position instead of full forward, which would have increased his airspeed and allowed him to recover. The pilot’s improper movement of the flight stick would have exacerbated the stall; however, it is unknown if he would have been able to successfully recover from the secondary stall at such a low altitude. The accident was the result of the pilot’s decision to conduct a spin maneuver at an altitude that was insufficient to complete a successful recovery. The pilot’s failure to successfully arrest the spin resulted in a secondary stall and subsequent impact with terrain.

On July 4, 2024, about 1723 mountain daylight time, a Game Composites LLC GB1 Gamebird airplane, N786AE, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Irwin, Idaho. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to the pilot of another airplane, he and the accident pilot were practicing an aerobatic formation flight for a future airshow within an aerobatic practice area just west of Alpine Airport (46U), Alpine, Wyoming. After completing the formation flight, the witness pilot maneuvered his airplane away from the aerobatic box while the accident pilot completed solo aerobatic maneuvers. Witnesses located on the Palisades Reservoir observed the airplane perform a series of solo aerobatic maneuvers. On the last series, they saw the airplane fly nearly vertically up, with aerobatic smoke on, then perform a tight, pivoting turn to a vertical descent. Immediately after, the airplane entered a flat spin maneuver. After multiple revolutions, the airplane entered a nose low dive and impacted the water. The recovered video recorders showed that both the lead airplane and the accident airplane performed formation aerobatics with no noted airframe or engine anomalies. During the formation flight, both pilots recovered from maneuvers between 1,200 and 1,700 ft agl. The video further showed that after the aerobatic formation flight, the accident pilot continued to perform solo maneuvers. The accident maneuver started with a positive pull up from 1,300 ft agl and 85 kts indicated airspeed (IAS). During the positive pull, the application of smoke began. The power setting was near maximum, about 2,600 rpm. The propeller was full forward, and the mixture setting was slightly leaned from the full forward position. The airplane climbed to 1,500 ft agl as the airspeed slightly decreased. The airplane then entered a loose spin, during which the pilot pulled positive pitch input with a soft left rudder input until the airplane entered a spin to the left. The flight controls at this time were predominantly control stick aft, rudder slight left, and ailerons initially placed to neutral. About 10 seconds later, the first turn of the spin was completed at about 1,500 ft agl. At this time, aileron input was full right, rudder input was to the left, and elevator input was aft. The next turn of the spin began to flatten and about 2 seconds later, the second left turn spin completed at about 1,300 ft agl and 80 kts IAS. The spin became almost flat by the end of turn two and stick input was the same as previously noted. The smoke appeared to be more vertical as it trailed the airplane. The pilot completed the third turn of the spin, and the airplane was nearly flat about 4 seconds later, at about 1,000 ft agl. The flight control positions remained the same. At this time, the smoke appeared to be in the cockpit as a light haze; however, the horizon and the groundfeatures remained visible from the cockpit. About 2 seconds later, the fourth turn completed at about 700 ft agl and 60 kts IAS. The airplane was still in a flat spin and the flight control inputs remained the same. Before the airplane entered into the fifth turn, the pilot reduced the power slightly and the altimeter read 500 ft agl, with the airspeed hovering around 70 kts IAS. The video showed that the airplane was fully developed in a flat left spin. At one-third of a turn into the fifth turn, the altimeter was at 400 ft agl, the airspeed showed 70 kts IAS, and the rudder and aileron input had been relaxed, with the elevator input around half nose up command. Smoke continued to vertically trail the airplane with some haze visible from the cockpit. The view from the cockpit showed that the airplane was primarily above water, but ground features were still visible in the distance. By three-fourths of a turn into the fifth turn, the rudder was slightly right, and the elevator command was slightly nose down. Aileron was full left deflection, and the smoke trailed the airplane less vertically. As the pilot completed the fifth turn of the spin, the rudder was significantly right, with the elevator input mostly neutral and the aileron input neutral. The control stick was also neutral at this time. The airplane’s pitch remained positive, and smoke was less vertical in relation to the airplane, but a light haze was still seen in the cockpit. Immediately after, the left rotation stopped. The elevator input was positive, and the aileron input was neutral. The airplane’s trajectory was consistent with the wings still being loaded. The rudder input was slightly to the right. About 1 second later, the airplane rotated to the right and appeared to enter an aerodynamic stall. The pilot then increased the engine power and deflected the elevator to about one-third to half deflection nose up. The airplane then rolled slightly to the right with a continued right spin. The ailerons were nearly fully deflected left and the rudder was slightly right. No smoke was seen trailing the airplane at this time, but the video showed a light haze in the cockpit, and the horizon and all ground features, including the water, were visible. The airplane then rolled hard right. The control deflections were generally the same as previously noted, with the ailerons still at nearly full deflection left as the airplane continued to roll right. The pitch was still nose down at this time; however, the elevator input changed to full nose up. Engine power remained at a high-power setting. As the aircraft continued to roll right, it pitched more nose down, with its rudder slightly deflected to the right, its elevator entirely nose aft, and its ailerons fully deflected to the left. The airplane then completed a little more than three-fourths of a turn to the right with the smoke off, and the flight controls were in the positions previously noted. The propeller was turning as the airplaneentered the water with its nose low and engine power setting remaining high. The airspeed at impact indicated 100 kts and the altimeter indicated 5,700 ft mean sea level, or 0 ft agl. Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane impacted the Palisades Reservoir and came to rest inverted in about 10 ft of water about 1 mile west of the departure end of runway 31 at 46U.?Examination of the recovered wreckage revealed that all major components were accounted for. Postaccident examination of the airfame and engine did not reveal any preimpact mechanical anomalies or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. The aileron, elevator, and rudder flight controls were traced from the flight control stick to their respective flight control surfaces through multiple overload separations. An autopsy of the pilot was conducted by the Lincoln County Coroner’s Office, Shoshone, Idaho. According to the report, the cause of death was blunt-force injuries. Toxicology testing by the FAA Forensic Sciences Division did not identify any substances of abuse in any of the samples submitted for the pilot. The FAA Airplane Flying Handbook states the following regarding stalls: A stall is an aerodynamic condition which occurs when smooth airflow over the airplane’s wings is disrupted, resulting in loss of lift. Specifically, a stall occurs when the AOA—the angle between the chord line of the wing and the relative wind—exceeds the wing’s critical angle of attack. It is possible to exceed the critical AOA at any airspeed, at any attitude, and at any power setting. The Handbook adds that the pilot should recover from the stall by immediately reducing the AOA and applying as much nose-down control input as required to eliminate the stall warning, level the wings with ailerons, coordinate with rudder, and smoothly advance the power as needed to return the airplane to its desired flight path. If the pilot does not recover from the initial stall and continues to pull back on the flight controls before the airplane has regained sufficient flying speed, the wings will exceed the AOA again. The handbook further states that if a stall occurs at a low altitude and the proximity to the ground increases, the pilot’s natural impulse is to bring the nose up as soon as possible and to do so abruptly, which would lead to a secondary stall. FAA Advisory Circular (AC) 61-67C, published September 25, 2000, provides guidance for spin recovery. According to the AC, “The first step in recovering from an upright spin is to close the throttle completely to eliminate power and minimize the loss of altitude. If the particular aircraft spin recovery techniques are not known, the next step is to neutralize the ailerons, determine the direction of the turn, and apply full opposite rudder. When the rotation slows, briskly move the elevator control forward to approximately the neutral position. Some aircraft require merely a relaxation of back pressure; others require fullforward elevator control pressure. Forward movement of the elevator control will decrease the AOA. Once the stall is broken, the spinning will stop. Neutralize the rudder when the spinning stops to avoid entering a spin in the opposite direction. When the rudder is neutralized, gradually apply enough aft elevator pressure to return to level flight. Too much or abrupt aft elevator pressure and/or application of rudder and ailerons during the recovery can result in a secondary stall and possibly another spin.” The Advisory Circular also provides an approximation for the loss of altitude incurred during a spin maneuver. “As a rough estimate, an altitude loss of approximately 500 feet per each 3-second turn can be expected in most small aircraft in which spins are authorized.” The departure airport, 46U, is a private airport in Alpine, Wyoming, at an elevation of 5,637 ft mean sea level with a single runway (13/31) that is 5,827 ft by 70 ft adjacent to Snake River/Palisades Reservoir. A Certificate of Waiver was issued for an authorized area of operation (aerobatic practice area) located about 1 nautical mile west of 46U. The practice area is a rectangular area of 3.5 statute miles in length and 1 statute mile in width, from the surface (5,620 ft) to 14,000 ft mean sea level. The special aerobatic provisions for the airport required all visual flight rules maneuvers that take place outside the aerobatic box be accomplished west of Alpine.