Accident Overview
On April 17, 2008, at 1925 eastern daylight time, an experimental light sport aircraft (E-LSA) E.B. Wood Phantom X1, registration N2692P, crashed into wooded terrain during touch-and-go landings at Warrenton Air Park, Warrenton, Virginia. The student pilot was killed, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time. No flight plan was filed for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
Pilot Information
The pilot, age 63, held a student pilot certificate, which was updated on February 8, 2008. He did not hold a sport pilot certificate. His logbook was not recovered, so total flight experience and endorsements could not be determined.
Aircraft Information
The single-seat, high-wing, fixed-gear airplane, serial number 040299013, was manufactured in 2003. It was powered by a Rotax 503 DCDI, 50-horsepower engine and equipped with a three-bladed Precision propeller C28A. The airframe total time was 94.4 hours as of January 28, 2008.
Narrative
A witness reported that the student pilot was performing touch-and-go landings. The witness heard the engine running, then lost sight of the airplane and shortly thereafter heard the engine "quit." He drove to the area where the engine stopped and located the wreckage, then called authorities.
Examination Findings
FAA inspectors examined the wreckage. The airplane had descended through trees into a field. The cockpit was crushed, the left wing impact damaged, and the empennage twisted to the right. Fuel leakage was observed. The rudder was slightly trailing edge right, and both elevators were slightly trailing edge up. Two of the three propeller blades were shattered. Flight control cable continuity was confirmed to all surfaces. The engine remained partially attached to the fuselage; throttle control assessment was precluded by cockpit damage. The ballistic parachute system was not deployed. No evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunction was found in the airframe, flight controls, engine, or systems.
Toxicology and Autopsy
An autopsy performed by the Virginia Chief Medical Examiner determined the cause of death as blunt force head and neck injuries. Forensic toxicology by the FAA Bioaeronautical Sciences Research Laboratory detected pseudoephedrine in the pilot's blood; no ethanol or other drugs were found.