25 May 2012: AEROS LTD/SKYRANGER AIRCRAFT SKYRANGER II

25 May 2012: AEROS LTD/SKYRANGER AIRCRAFT SKYRANGER II (N192RR) — Unknown operator

No fatalities • Saline, MI, United States

Probable cause

The pilot did not maintain proper control of the airplane while maneuvering at low altitude, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

— NTSB Determination

Accident narrative

On May 25, 2012, about 1145 eastern daylight time, an Aeros Skyranger II experimental light sport airplane, N192RR, impacted terrain near Saline, Michigan. The pilot and passenger sustained serious injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged. The aircraft was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was not operated on a flight plan. The local flight originated from Ann Arbor Municipal Airport (ARB), Ann Arbor, Michigan about 1130.

The pilot reported that he was maneuvering at low altitude when the airplane inadvertently stalled, resulting in an "extremely hard drop" and impact onto the landing gear. He noted that there was insufficient altitude available to recover from the aerodynamic stall. The flight conditions included uneven ground heating and updrafts, according to the pilot. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions that precipitated the accident.

A witness observed the airplane flying on a southwest course about 200 feet above ground level. The airplane turned to reverse course to the northeast and then entered a right turn, which was steeper than the preceding turn. The airplane did not recover from that turn and subsequently "fell" out of the sky.

The accident site was located about 3 miles southeast of ARB in the backyard of a residence. The airplane came to rest upright; although, the landing gear had collapsed and the fuselage sustained substantial damage. A postaccident examination conducted by Federal Aviation Administration inspectors did not reveal any anomalies consistent with a preimpact failure or malfunction.

Contributing factors

  • cause Pilot
  • Altitude — Not attained/maintained

Conditions

Weather
VMC, wind 260/13kt, vis 10sm

Loading the flight search…

What you can do on Flight Finder

  • Search flights between any two airports with live fares.
  • By aircraft — pick a plane model (e.g. Boeing 787, Airbus A350) and see every route it flies from your origin.
  • Route map — click any airport worldwide to explore its destinations, or draw a radius to find nearby airports.
  • Global aviation safety — aviation accident database, 5,200+ records since 1980, with map and rankings by aircraft and operator.
  • NTSB safety feed — recent U.S. aviation accidents and incidents from the official NTSB CAROL database, updated daily.

Frequently asked questions

How do I search flights by aircraft type on FlightFinder?

Pick an aircraft model — Boeing 737, Airbus A320, A380, Boeing 787 Dreamliner and more — enter your origin airport, and FlightFinder shows every route that plane flies from there with live fares.

Which aircraft types can I filter by?

We support Boeing 737/747/757/767/777/787, the full Airbus A220/A319/A320/A321/A330/A340/A350/A380 family, Embraer E170/E175/E190/E195, Bombardier CRJ and Dash 8, and the ATR 42/72 turboprops.

Is FlightFinder free to use?

Search and schedules are free. Pro ($4.99/month, $39/year, or $99 one-time lifetime) unlocks the enriched flight card — on-time stats, CO₂ per passenger, amenities, live gate & weather — plus My Trips with push alerts.

Where does the route data come from?

Live schedules come from Amadeus, AeroDataBox and Travelpayouts. Observed routes (which aircraft actually flew a given city pair) are crowdsourced from adsb.lol ADS-B data under the Open Database License.