Accident Details
The pilot was departing to the south on his private 2,000-foot-long, 60-foot-wide grass runway. He stated the airplane was configured with "two notches" of flaps. He rotated at 60 mph and climbed at 75 mph. The pilot then realized that the airplane was not climbing fast enough to clear the 50-foot-high trees located at the end of the runway. As the airplane approached the trees, the pilot made a right turn; however, the left wing struck a tree and the airplane came to rest in a field.
Aircraft and Environment
The pilot reported that the airplane's gross weight at the time of the accident was about 1,900 pounds. Weather reported at an airport about 22 miles southwest of the accident site, around the time of the accident, included winds from 150 degrees at 10 knots with 17 knot gusts, a temperature of 73 degrees F, and an altimeter setting of 29.73 in/hg.
Performance Data
Review of the takeoff distance chart in the airplane owner's handbook revealed that the distance to clear a 50-foot obstacle, at a gross weight of 1,950 pounds, was about 1,900 feet. However, the chart was predicated on a takeoff from a level hard surface runway, in a no wind, zero flap configuration.