What happened
On August 1, 2011, an Edwards Douglas L Sky Ranger, registration N750 Ascendant 7501Y, crashed near Wautoma Metropolitan Airport (Y50) in Wautoma, Wisconsin. The aircraft, an experimental light sport airplane, was being operated by a sport pilot on a personal flight destined for a private airstrip near Maquoketa, Iowa. At the time of the accident, weather conditions were visual meteorological conditions with a visibility of 10 statute miles.
The pilot took off from a grass runway heading east and climbed to approximately 200 feet. While attempting to circle the airport for an overflight, the pilot reported a loss of control over the horizontal tail. Despite multiple attempts to correct the flight path by pulling back on the control stick, the aircraft entered a dive and struck the ground 100 feet from the end of the runway. An eyewitness observed the aircraft climb to between 100 and 150 feet before performing a sharp pull-up and entering a left-hand turn. During this turn, the aircraft appeared to stall and descend rapidly into the ground. The accident resulted in 1 fatal and 1 serious injury.
The investigation
An investigation of the wreckage at the accident site revealed an initial impact scrape followed by an eight-foot-long, three-foot-wide crater containing propeller fragments and fiberglass from the cowling and windscreen. The main wreckage came to rest upright at a 35-degree nose-down attitude.
Mechanical examination of the N7501Y showed that the engine, engine mounts, cowling, and forward cockpit area were crushed and twisted, which was consistent with a left-hand, nose-down spiral impact. While the left wing rear spar was fractured and the left wing strut was bent, the right wing remained undamaged and the empennage showed no damage. All flight control continuity was established from the cockpit controls to the flight control surfaces. No preimpact anomalies were found in the engine or other airplane systems.