Aircraft Collision with Terrain After Departure from Turf Runway (N62541)

Departure Conditions and Sequence of Events A pilot flew the aircraft to an airport with two turf runways. Runway 5/23 was 2,300 feet long, and Runway 4/22 was 2,600 feet long. After attending a meeting that ended at 1600 EDT, the pilot decided to wait until later in the day to take off after the air had cooled. The pilot began the departure from Runway 5. At the time, the temperature was still about 90 degrees, the density altitude was approximately 2,250 feet, and there was a light wind from the south. Witnesses reported that after lift-off, the aircraft was in a nose-high attitude when it entered a turn to the right. The aircraft then collided with a tree and crashed approximately 200 feet east of the airport. ## Findings and Performance Data No preimpact part failure or malfunction of the aircraft was found. A weight and balance computation showed the aircraft was loaded approximately 36 pounds over its maximum gross weight limit. At 1853 EDT, the wind at Lebanon, New Hampshire, approximately 15 miles south, was from 200 degrees at 5 knots. Takeoff computations, allowing for a turf runway and a 5-knot tailwind, showed that 1,492 feet of runway would be required to take off and 2,725 feet would be needed to clear a 50-foot obstacle.