Accident Narrative
The pilot was conducting a night flight under visual meteorological conditions from a rural desert airport. She reported that prior to departure, she performed weight and balance calculations, checked the temperature, and completed performance calculations.
After rotation, the airplane was not producing sufficient power and was not climbing as anticipated, and the stall warning horn became audible. The pilot lowered the airplane's nose, and the stall warning horn silenced. She then heard scraping sounds, indicating ground impact, but could not see the terrain due to the darkness. Subsequently, the airplane impacted the ground off the airport, resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage.
In a follow-up email conversation with the pilot's attorney, the attorney stated that the pilot reported the engine was producing power at the time the aerodynamic stall warning horn was audible and just before impact, but noted that the power was not sufficient.
Post-Accident Examination
A photograph of the accident airplane provided by the responding Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector showed all three propeller blades exhibited tip curl, torsional twisting, and S-bending, consistent with the engine producing power at the time of impact.
The airplane performance and weight and balance calculations that the pilot performed prior to the accident flight were requested by the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge, but were not provided.
Pilot Statement
The pilot stated she was unaware of any preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Reference Material
The Federal Aviation Administration has published the Airplane Flying Handbook FAA-H-8083-3A (2004). This handbook discusses aerodynamic stalls and states in part: "The key to stall awareness is the pilot's ability to visualize the wing's angle of attack in any particular circumstance, and thereby be able to estimate his/her margin of safety above stall... Stall accidents usually result from an inadvertent stall at a low altitude in which a recovery was not accomplished prior to contact with the surface."