Accident Details
On July 14, 2009, at 2004 eastern daylight time, an amateur-built experimental Antares MA-33, registration N6405, sustained substantial damage when it impacted terrain near Chapman Field (OH71), Centerburg, Ohio. The private pilot, the sole occupant, received fatal injuries. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight departed about 2001 on a local flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed.
Witness Account
A witness with about 3,000 hours of flight experience reported observing the weight-shift controlled aircraft depart from the grass airstrip about three minutes before the accident. The aircraft was about 100 to 150 feet above ground level. The witness stated, “The plane seemed to go up and then the left wing dipped, and then the airplane spiraled to the ground.” The witness reported the engine was running.
Impact and Wreckage
The aircraft impacted a mature cornfield 150 feet north of runway 27 (3,200 feet by 80 feet, turf) and about 800 feet from the departure end of runway 27. Winds were reported as 270 degrees at 10 knots. The traffic pattern for runway 27 is right traffic. The wreckage was confined to the initial impact area. Corn stalks surrounding the impact area were still standing and lacked damage from the aircraft’s descent. The leading edge of the wing was crushed aft; the nose gear and cockpit fairing were crushed and buckled aft. The aft-mounted engine remained attached to the airframe and rested on its side, exhibiting impact damage. The fuel tank was ruptured. The two-bladed propeller remained attached with both blades showing impact damage.
Aircraft Information
The aircraft was an amateur-built experimental Antares MA-33, serial number 070382, manufactured in 2003. It was a two-seat weight-shift controlled aircraft powered by a 65-horsepower Rotax 582 engine with a maximum gross weight of 990 pounds. The original owner/builder sold the aircraft to a second owner, who reported parking it in his hangar and never flying it. The second owner sold the aircraft to the accident pilot in an “as is condition.” A witness reported that the pilot had started basing the aircraft at the airport three days before the accident and had been observed taxiing at high speeds several times, but not flying.
Maintenance Issues
FAA inspectors examined the cornfield and the aircraft in storage. The inspection found that the engine oil pump lever was plastic-tie wrapped in the two o’clock position with no cable attached. The exhaust had only two bolts per side; two bolts were missing. The foot throttle lever had a bungee cord wrapped around it, keeping it in the maximum power setting. The aircraft logbook indicated the last conditional maintenance inspection was conducted on December 15, 2006, signed off by the original owner. A condition inspection was started on June 1, 2008, but was not completed and lacked a signature. The aircraft experimental operating limitations (as of August 28, 2005) stated, “No person shall operate this aircraft unless the preceding twelve calendar months it has had a conditional inspection performed, and recorded in the aircraft maintenance records.”
Pilot Information
The pilot was a 54-year-old private pilot with a single-engine land rating. He held a third class medical certificate issued in September 2007, at which time he reported 1,250 total flight hours. His logbook indicated 3.1 hours of instruction in an “AirBorne” MicroLight XT-912, a weight-shift controlled aircraft, on April 4–5, 2009, and about 8 hours in the accident aircraft. A brother reported that the pilot began flying in 1979 and had extensive experience in weight-shift controlled and ultralight aircraft.
Toxicology
An autopsy conducted on July 15, 2009, at the Licking County Coroner’s Office, and a Forensic Toxicology Fatal Accident Report from the FAA Civil Aeromedical Institute, were both negative for all substances and drugs tested.