What happened
The accident occurred during an attempted takeoff from a field situated directly next to a dense grove of trees. As the aircraft accelerated down the runway, it was unable to achieve the necessary climb gradient to clear the tree line. Consequently, the aircraft impacted the trees shortly after becoming airborne.
The investigation
Following the crash, investigators conducted a test run of the aircraft's engine. During the initial start-up phase, the engine ran rough, indicating a potential mechanical irregularity at that specific moment. However, as the test run continued, the engine began to operate normally. Despite this recovery, the root cause of the initial rough running was not determined.
Findings
The primary factor in this accident was the aircraft's inability to climb over the trees during the takeoff phase. The proximity of the tree line to the takeoff field significantly reduced the available safety margin for clearing obstacles. While the engine exhibited transient roughness during start-up, it did not prevent the aircraft from attempting takeoff, nor was it definitively linked to the performance shortfall that led to the collision.