History of Flight
On January 30, 2016, at 1445 eastern standard time, an experimental amateur-built Lancair IV-P, registered as N401PT, was destroyed when it struck terrain shortly after departing from Southwest Georgia Regional Airport (ABY) in Albany, Georgia. The two pilots and a passenger sustained fatal injuries. The aircraft was owned and operated by a commercial pilot. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local personal flight conducted under Part 91.
Video from an airport security system showed the airplane rotating for takeoff about 1,200 feet from the beginning of runway 22. After rotation, it banked sharply to the right and climbed to treetop height. The bank angle increased to about 90 degrees, and the airplane descended to the ground in that attitude.
A witness about a quarter-mile north of the accident site reported that the engine sounded normal until shortly before impact, when it became louder.
Personnel Information
A witness stated that before departure, the commercial pilot (owner/pilot) occupied the left front seat, and the airline transport pilot (second pilot) sat in the right front seat. The investigation could not determine which pilot was at the controls or acting as pilot in command. Neither pilot's logbook was available.
The owner/pilot held a commercial certificate with single-engine land and instrument ratings. He reported 1,000 flight hours at his last FAA medical exam on January 20, 2015.
The second pilot held an airline transport certificate with multiengine land and rotorcraft helicopter ratings, a commercial certificate with single-engine land rating, and a flight instructor certificate with multiple ratings. He reported 6,750 hours at his last FAA medical exam on July 8, 2015.
Acquaintances said the owner/pilot’s experience in the Lancair IV-P was exclusively in the accident airplane, purchased about two months before the crash. The owner arranged for the second pilot to receive Lancair training at Deland Municipal Airport (DED) in Florida, where the airplane was temporarily stored. The plan was for the second pilot to then train the owner. As of January 12, 2016, the owner had not met insurance solo flight requirements.
A flight instructor at DED provided the second pilot with 9 hours of flight training in the accident airplane during the week of January 6, 2016. The instructor noted that a flight was conducted at maximum rear center of gravity with full main tanks and the owner in the rear seat. He advised that if belly and rear tanks were full, the airplane should be treated as a two-seater with no luggage.
An employee at ABY observed several previous flights. Twice the owner flew alone, and once he flew with the second pilot in the right seat and a passenger in the rear.
Aircraft Information
The turbo-propeller-powered airplane was built in 2002, powered by a 724-horsepower Walter M601-D engine driving a three-blade propeller. It had retractable tricycle landing gear and no gust lock. The most recent condition inspections on October 29, 2015, found the airframe and engine satisfactory. The pilot purchased the airplane on December 10, 2015.
Maintenance during the week of January 25, 2016, included replacing the starter generator and repairing a nose gear door, but these tasks were not documented in the logbooks.
Fuel records showed nine fuelings at ABY between January 10 and January 30, 2016. Just before the accident flight, the airplane was fueled with 64 gallons to top off all tanks. Fuel capacity was 60 gallons per wing tank and a combined 38 gallons in two auxiliary tanks (one in the baggage area, one in the belly).
Two weight and balance sheets were found. One, dated May 2005, listed maximum gross weight as 3,800 pounds and CG moment range between 108.37 and 116.3 inches, without referencing the auxiliary tanks installed in October 2011. The other sheet was undated, included the baggage-area auxiliary tank as an example, but omitted the belly tank and did not state maximum gross weight or CG limits.
Using occupant weights from medical records and assuming full main and auxiliary tanks, the estimated weight at the time of the accident was 4,270 pounds with a CG moment arm of 116.8 inches. This exceeded the May 2005 limits by about 470 pounds and placed the CG 0.5 inch aft of the aft limit.
Meteorological Information
The 1451 weather observation at ABY recorded wind from 210° at 9 knots, clear skies, visibility 10 statute miles, temperature 21°C, dew point 3°C, and altimeter setting 30.13 inches of mercury.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The airplane impacted a grass field about 1,900 feet from the runway start and 280 feet right of the centerline. The wreckage path was 170 feet long on a heading of 270°. Debris near the initial impact included a green position lens and the right winglet. Both wings separated at the roots. The empennage was largely intact but showed severe fire and impact damage forward of the rear seats. The right horizontal stabilizer and elevator were fractured mid-span. The elevator trim tab trailing edge was deflected 1/2 inch downward; the rudder trim tab was deflected 1/4 inch to the right. The engine mounting tubes were fractured, the engine inverted, and the propeller hub separated. All three propeller blades showed aft bending and twisting.
Engine power turbine blades were intact with slight bending. The engine casing was displaced and twisted; the propeller shaft turned easily after gear removal. The main landing gear were retracted; nose gear position could not be determined. Elevator and rudder control continuity were confirmed up to the cabin area, but aileron continuity could not be verified due to damage.
Medical and Pathological Information
Autopsies performed by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation determined the cause of death for both pilots as multiple blunt force trauma. Toxicological tests for the owner/pilot were negative for carbon monoxide, ethanol, and drugs of abuse; acetaminophen was detected in urine, which does not pose a flight hazard. Tests for the second pilot were negative for all substances.
Additional Information
A portable GPS receiver captured about 36 hours of flight data up to the accident. Previous takeoffs from ABY typically showed liftoff between 1,000 and 1,500 feet; during training at DED, liftoff was between 1,500 and 1,900 feet.
About two weeks before the accident, the second pilot told his flight instructor that during a takeoff with full auxiliary tanks, after rotating at 80 knots, he and the owner lost control and nearly crashed. The instructor advised easy rotation, not too low airspeed, and readiness with rudder. The second pilot also reported that a nose gear door was damaged during gear retraction on that takeoff. The instructor opined the damage resulted from uncoordinated flight; the owner believed it was due to not neutralizing the rudder before retraction.
The instructor, also a Lancair IV-P owner, said he normally rotated at 85 to 90 knots and transitioned to a high pitch attitude to avoid exceeding the 120-knot landing gear operating speed. He cautioned against raising gear too soon at slower speeds or higher density altitudes, as doors could cause yaw, especially in ground effect.
The Pilot's Operating Handbook specified a design rotation speed of 80 knots for a 3,900-pound maximum gross weight airplane. According to the FAA Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, center of gravity locations aft of allowable range may cause extreme control difficulty.