Accident Overview
The airplane veered off the side of the runway and ground looped at Nut Tree Airport in Vacaville, California. The pilot had flown a total of 17.4 hours over two days with little sleep, and had been awake for about 21 hours on the day of the accident, flying 15 hours.
Flight Sequence
Earlier, the pilot flew 2.7 hours from Watsonville to Little River for fuel, then to Ukiah where he and his family ate dinner and spent the night. They departed Ukiah at 0800, flew to Brookings, Oregon, for fuel, then to North Bend where they refueled, added oil, ate lunch, and shopped. At 1400, they departed North Bend, flew up the mouth of the Columbia River Gorge, and landed at Astoria, Oregon, for fuel and coffee. They then flew to Myrtle Creek, arriving about 2015. The pilot's family exited the airplane, and he performed three full-stop solo landings for night currency. The family boarded and they proceeded to Crescent City, California, where the airplane was refueled. They departed Crescent City with full fuel and flew to Nut Tree Airport.
Landing and Refueling
The Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS) for Vacaville reported calm winds, and the pilot landed on runway 20 without incident. He refueled the airplane at idle power because he had experienced difficulty starting the engine in Crescent City.
Takeoff and Accident
After refueling, the pilot taxied to runway 2 for takeoff. He raised the tail of the airplane at a lower airspeed than normal. The airplane yawed to the left, and the pilot applied full right rudder. The airplane veered off the left side of the runway and bounced hard on a dirt berm. It spun around 180 degrees before coming to rest beside the runway. After exiting the airplane, the pilot noticed a steady 1- to 2-knot wind from 200 degrees. The pilot stated that the airplane and engine had no mechanical failures or malfunctions during the flight. The wind conditions at Vacaville at 0353 were reported to be from 200 degrees at 5 knots.