Incident Overview
The incident took place during a night takeoff. A vehicle was positioned at the departure end of the runway, and its headlights were shining toward the aircraft during the takeoff roll. The airplane was observed to take an abnormally long roll before becoming airborne. After lifting off, the airplane turned and settled into trees.
Weight and Balance Assessment
An estimation indicated that the airplane's forward center of gravity (CG) limit was exceeded. This calculation was based on the weights of the pilot and the front seat passenger.
Pilot Details
The pilot had no useful vision in one eye. Additionally, the pilot had previously flown the airplane on a single magneto on more than one occasion.
Post-Event Examination
The magneto switch was found in the right magneto position.