Accident Details
A 256-hour private pilot and a passenger were departing a private 1,200-foot-long grass airstrip in a two-seat, single-engine airplane when the aircraft collided with brush that was 10 to 14 feet tall. The airplane then flew across a 14-foot-wide drainage ditch located beyond the departure end of the runway before it landed in an open field and nosed over.
Aircraft Examination
Examination of the vintage airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector revealed that the throttle was in the "idle" position and both propeller blades were bent aft. The aircraft was manufactured in 1947, and the manufacturer did not publish takeoff performance data for this airplane.
Environmental Conditions
The outside air temperature at the time of the accident was 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Both occupants weighed in excess of 200 pounds. The investigator in charge calculated the density altitude near the time of the accident at 2,296 feet.