WPR25FA020

The pilot was conducting aerobatic maneuvers over desert terrain during an airshow. About 5 minutes into the routine, video evidence showed that the airplane completed two forward tumbles followed by a third tumble that paused briefly while inverted. The airplane then entered a near-vertical descent. In an apparent attempt to recover toward show center, the pilot initiated a high-positive-G pull-up. As the recovery progressed, the right wing appeared to enter an accelerated stall. The airplane subsequently impacted the ground in a nose-low, right-rolling attitude and was destroyed. Examination revealed no anomalies with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation, and damage signatures and witness accounts indicated that the engine was producing power at the time of the accident. The density altitude at the time of the accident was 6,554 ft above mean sea level (msl). The pilot’s shallow upline entry angle into the maneuver, which was less than 45° from level flight and below the pilot’s customary entry profile based on a review of his previous performances of the same maneuver, provided less altitude and energy at the start of the maneuver. Additionally, the pilot initiated the maneuver from an orientation that directed energy toward the ground; initiating the maneuver in the opposite direction would have resulted in an upward energy vector. Subsequent maneuver execution further degraded the airplane’s energy state and available control authority. The pilot’s control inputs during the final portion of the maneuver resulted in an inverted flat spin that culminated in an accelerated aerodynamic stall. A higher entry altitude would have provided additional recovery margin and may have better accommodated the reduction in performance associated with the prevailing high density altitude conditions. The pilot’s initiation of the tumble maneuver at an insufficient altitude with a downward energy vector, combined with the elevated density altitude and pilot’s control inputs, resulted in a loss of energy that culminated in an unrecoverable low-altitude stall.

The pilot had a previous airplane accident on August 16, 2006, in an Extra Flugzeugbau EA-300, N12DW, in Mojave, California. The accident circumstances included the pilot's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed while performing low-level aerobatics that resulted in an inadvertent accelerated stall and in-flight collision with terrain. (See NTSB case ID LAX06LA262 for more information.). The airplane was equipped with a GoPro Hero 8 Black onboard image recorder. MicroSD files were successfully retrieved from the device. The accident flight was not recorded on the playable files. An NTSB Onboard Image Recorder and Ground Videos group was convened to analyze recordings of the pilot’s prior airshow performances and compare them with onboard footage from the accident flight. The footage was transcribed and attended with an Aerobatic Competency Evaluator (ACE), International Council of Air Shows (ICAS) representative who had completed his career flying the accident airplane at air shows. The review revealed that, following completion of the final two tumble maneuvers, the airplane transitioned from a tumble into an incipient inverted spin. As the spin developed, the airplane continued to lose altitude until the spin was arrested in a nose-down, near-vertical attitude opposite the airplane's initial heading at the start of the maneuver. The flight control inputs and the airplane’s trajectory were consistent with the pilot regaining at least some degree of control authority. The group made the following observations regarding the pilot’s maneuvers relevant to the accident sequence: • The density altitude at the accident site was elevated, adversely affecting the airplane performance margins. • The maneuver was initiated at a relatively low altitude above ground level, lower than observed in previous performances of similar maneuvers. • During the upline segment, the pilot did not maintain a true vertical line, as the flightpath leveled during the roll. • The tumble was initiated from an orientation that directed energy toward the ground; initiating the maneuver in the opposite direction would have resulted in an upward energy vector. • Performing the maneuver to the right would have better utilized gyroscopic precession, which would reduce the need for opposing control inputs. • Control input during the final portion of the maneuver resulted in an accelerated stall. Additionally, the video suggested that the pilot remained properly restrained by his harness throughout the sequence, as his position in the final recorded frame did not show him slumped over or lose consciousness. There was no evidence in the recording of any pre-accident mechanical failure or malfunction of the airplane or engine that would have precluded normal operation. On October 20, 2024, about 1424 mountain daylight time, an Extra Flugzeugbau GmbH EA 300/L airplane, N512DW, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident at Las Cruces, New Mexico. The pilot was fatally injured.The airplane was being operated under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations as a Part 91 air show flight. The pilot was participating in the Las Cruces Air and Space Expo and was nearing the end of his 15-minute aerobatic routine. Interviews with airport operations personnel indicated no concern regarding the pilot’s condition; staff described him as being in good spirits before the event. Video captured by multiple spectators showed the accident airplane perform two forward tumble maneuvers about the lateral (pitch) axis, followed by entry into a third tumble. About halfway through the third maneuver, the airplane stopped tumbling and transitioned to an inverted, nearly level attitude consistent with a flat spin. The airplane then pitched nose-down below the horizon about 60° to 70°. Shortly thereafter, it began a right roll before impacting the ground. An autopsy of the pilot was performed by the Office of the Medical Investigator Albuquerque, New Mexico. According to the pilot’s autopsy report, his cause of death was blunt trauma and his manner of death an accident. The FAA's Forensic Sciences Laboratory performed toxicological tests on specimens recovered from the pilot. The pilot’s postmortem toxicological testing did not detect any ethanol or drugs. The pilot's logbook was not available for review. On his most recent FAA medical certification application dated October 18, 2023, he reported 11,209 hours of total civil flight experience, including 233 hours accumulated during the preceding 6 months. According to the airplane's logbook, he had accrued 5.2 hours of flight time in the accident airplane during the 90 days preceding the accident. The airplane impacted desert terrain about 200 ft northwest of runway 4/22 at Las Cruces International Airport (LRU), Las Cruces, New Mexico. The airplane came to rest on its right side on a magnetic heading of about 130° at an elevation of 4,434 ft mean sea level (msl). The first identified point of contact (FIPC) was a ground scar consistent with impact by the right wing tip. The right wing was separated from the fuselage and located adjacent to the initial ground scar. A crater about 6 ft in diameter and 1 ft deep was observed at the right wing root. The main wreckage came to rest about 20 ft beyond the crater. The left wing, with the aileron attached, was found inverted about 50 ft from the FIPC. The tail section exhibited impact-related compression damage and skin wrinkling. It was displaced about 40° to the left of the rear passenger compartment and came to rest upright. The horizontal stabilizers, elevators, vertical stabilizer, and rudder remained attached and exhibited no significant impact damage. Flight control continuity was established from the cockpit to all primary flight control surfaces. Multiple separations were identified within the flight control system; each displayed characteristics consistent with overload failure. Postaccident examination of the airframe andengine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.