On August 23, 2009, a BROWN JOSEPH B JR RV-6 (registration N352JB) was involved in an aviation accident near Ama, LA. 2 people were killed. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control during takeoff. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 1 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
A Brown RV-6, N352JB, crashed into a tree during takeoff at St. Charles Airport, Louisiana, on August 23, 2009, killing the pilot and flight instructor.
Accident Overview and Flight Details On August 23, 2009, at approximately 1630 central daylight time, a Brown RV-6, N352JB, was substantially damaged when it impacted a tree during the takeoff roll at St. Charles Airport (LS40) in Ama, Louisiana. A post-impact fire followed the collision. The flight was an instructional local flight operating under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 without a filed flight plan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The private pilot and the commercial certificated flight instructor were fatally injured. According to local law enforcement, the private pilot had hired the flight instructor for further training due to anxiety about flying the aircraft. A witness reported that the airplane taxied from the hangar to the departure end of runway 35 and remained there for several minutes, consistent with a pre-takeoff check. The aircraft initiated its takeoff roll and shortly thereafter veered off the runway to the left. The witness lost sight of the airplane and soon observed smoke in the vicinity where it disappeared. Local law enforcement stated that the airplane impacted a tree head-on. A ground scar, consistent in width with the landing gear, departed the runway edge and extended 315 feet to the point of impact. The wreckage was recovered for further examination. ## Personnel Information The private pilot, age 61, held a private pilot certificate with an airplane single-engine land rating, last issued on December 24, 1977. He held a third-class airman medical certificate issued on June 5, 2007, with the limitation “must wear corrective lenses.” His logbook indicated no less than 361 total hours, including 31 hours in the make and model of the accident airplane. His last logged flight was on October 17, 2008. He completed a flight review on February 27, 2007, and received a tailwheel endorsement on July 14, 2001. The flight instructor, age 42, held a commercial pilot certificate with airplane single- and multiengine (limited to center thrust) land, rotorcraft helicopter, and airplane and helicopter instrument ratings, last issued on October 25, 2005. He also held a flight instructor certificate with airplane single-engine privileges. His second-class airman medical certificate, issued in December 2008, contained no limitations. His logbook indicated no less than 3,760 total hours, including 0.6 hours in the make and model of the accident airplane. ## Aircraft Information The accident airplane was a Joseph B Brown Jr. RV-6, serial number 23804, manufactured in 2002. It was registered with the Federal Aviation Administration on an experimental airworthiness certificate for amateur-built operations. The aircraft was powered by a Lycoming O-320-H2AD engine rated at 160 horsepower at 2,700 rpm and equipped with a two-blade, wooden Aymar-Demuth propeller. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot and maintained under a conditional inspection program. Maintenance records indicated a condition inspection was completed at an airframe total time of 388 hours, though this logbook entry was not dated. The last dated maintenance entry was on June 14, 2009, when a “conditional inspection” was completed at a tachometer time of 385 hours and an airframe total time of 382.6 hours. ## Meteorological and Airport Information The closest official weather observation station was Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (KMSY), located 3 nautical miles northeast of the accident site. The routine aviation weather report (METAR) for KMSY, issued at 1553, reported winds from 350 degrees at 5 knots, visibility of 10 miles, few clouds at 25,000 feet, a temperature of 29 degrees Celsius, a dew point of 14 degrees Celsius, and an altimeter setting of 29.98 inches of mercury. St. Charles Airport is a private, uncontrolled airport situated one mile southeast of Ama, Louisiana, at a surveyed elevation of 13 feet. The airport had one runway, runway 17/35, measuring 3,900 feet by 125 feet with a turf surface. ## Wreckage and Impact Information The accident site was located on the private airfield in trees to the left side of the departure runway, at an elevation of 13 feet mean sea level. The forward portion of the fuselage, including the cabin area, canopy, and instrument panel, was charred, melted, and partially consumed by fire. The right rudder cable was continuous from the rudder control surface forward to the rudder pedal, though it had been cut near the pedal for recovery purposes. The left rudder cable was continuous from the rudder forward toward the rudder pedal but separated from the forward portion. The elevator push/pull tube was continuous from the elevator to the control horn, with separation points consistent with exposure to heat and fire. The empennage, including the horizontal stabilizers, elevators, vertical stabilizer, rudder, and tail wheel assembly, remained attached to the aft portion of the fuselage. The right wing exhibited aft crushing four feet six inches inboard from the wing tip, with a crush area 15 inches wide and crushed aft 17.5 inches. The left wing exhibited aft crushing six feet seven inches inboard from the wing tip, with a crush area four feet in diameter and crushed two feet aft into the spar. Both propeller blades separated from the propeller hub and were splintered. The right gear leg remained attached to the airframe, while the left landing gear leg separated partially from the airframe. ## Medical and Pathological Information The New Orleans Forensic Center – New Orleans Coroner’s Office performed autopsies on both the pilot and the flight instructor on August 24, 2009. The autopsy reports concluded that the cause of death for both individuals was “partial incineration from fire secondary to [the] airplane crash.” The FAA’s Civil Aerospace Medical Institute performed toxicological tests on specimens collected during the autopsies. The pilot’s blood test revealed 21 percent carbon monoxide and was negative for cyanide, ethanol, and drugs. Urine testing revealed naproxen but was negative for all other tests. The flight instructor’s blood test revealed a level of 24 percent carbon monoxide, with results negative for the remaining tests conducted. ## Tests and Research The airplane was examined under the auspices of the Safety Board investigator-in-charge on September 28, 2009. The wreckage was contained on an open flatbed trailer and three rubber containers. Both the right and left wing assemblies and the engine assembly were separated from the fuselage for transportation purposes. The rudder cable was sent to the Materials Laboratory in Washington, D.C., for further examination. The separation surface exhibited signatures consistent with an overload event or separation, with no evidence of any preexisting defect or damage.