Accident Details
According to air traffic control transcripts, the pilot departed runway 22 at Smith Reynolds Airport at 1112 and was en route to Centerville, Tennessee. One minute later, at 1113, the pilot reported that he was returning due to a problem. At 1116, the pilot reported that he was experiencing "a lot of down pressure on the yoke". Following this report, the pilot lost control of the airplane, and it collided with a tree in a residential area.
Examination Findings
Post-accident examination of the elevator assembly found that a bolt and castellated nut were missing on the elevator trim tab control rod at the trim tab jackscrew. Investigators noted that there was no evidence indicating that the bolt had broken or sheared due to impact forces. Examination of the forward trim tab push-pull rod clevis revealed a dry, oxidized condition, which suggested that the attaching bolt had been missing for an undetermined period before the accident. The damage to the trim tab push-pull rod indicated that it was in the full up position at the time of impact, which corresponds to the elevator being in the full down position.
Aircraft Information
The airframe had accumulated a total of 3,650 hours at the time of the accident. Since its last inspection, which involved the removal, stripping, repainting, balancing, and reinstallation of all flight controls, the aircraft had accumulated 35 hours of flight time.