What happened
On May 8, 2016, at approximately 10:25 CDT, an Airborne Windsport Edge X Classic bearing registration N701FP crashed at Rush City Airport (ROS) in Rush City, Minnesota. The aircraft was being operated by a student pilot for a personal flight under 14 CFR Part 91.
Video footage of the event showed the aircraft departing on runway 16 and climbing to an altitude between 300 and 400 feet. During the climb, the aircraft banked sharply to the left and then descended into the terrain in a steep, nose-down attitude. The engine was heard producing power at the moment of impact. The pilot, who was the sole occupant, sustained 1 fatal injury.
At the time of the accident, weather conditions were visual meteorological conditions (VMC) with a visibility of 10 statute miles and winds from 200 degrees at 6 knots. No flight plan had been filed for the flight.
The investigation
Mechanical examination of the wreckage showed no evidence of pre-impact engine or structural failures.
Investigation into the pilot's training revealed that while he had logged 14 hours in a different weight-shift control aircraft in Arizona, he had never flown the N701FP before the accident. The pilot's flight instructor stated that the student had not been endorsed for solo flight and had previously struggled with managing takeoffs and landings. Specifically, the instructor noted a tendency to leave the control bar extended after takeoff, which caused an excessive pitch attitude and steep climbs. The instructor also noted that the pilot had been training in both fixed-wing and weight-shift control aircraft, which can lead to confusion regarding control inputs.
An autopsy determined the cause of death to be multiple blunt force injuries. Toxicology reports found no ethanol or carbon monoxide, though caffeine and ranitidine were present in the urine.