History of Flight
On August 23, 2019, at approximately 2015 central daylight time, an experimental Meyers Midget 0100 airplane, registration N881MM, sustained substantial damage in an accident near Big Spring, Texas. The pilot, who was the sole occupant, was fatally injured. The flight was conducted under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight.
A witness, who was a friend of the pilot and flying a separate airplane alongside, reported that the purpose of the flight was for the accident pilot to practice flying in close proximity to another airplane and to practice a roll maneuver. Both aircraft departed from Big Spring McMahon-Wrinkle Airport (BPG) in Big Spring, Texas, and performed several oval maneuvers above the airport. They climbed to about 4,000 ft above ground level. The witness observed the accident pilot initiate a "pretty steep" dive, causing the witness to maneuver to keep the airplane in sight. When the airplane came back into view, it was inverted and slightly nose down, then entered a steep, tight spiral. The witness dove his airplane and shouted directions over the radio, but the pilot did not respond, and the airplane's motion did not change. After about four or five additional spirals, the airplane righted itself. The witness continued to dive and yell directions. He reported that the airplane appeared to level off about 500 ft above the ground, entered a slight right turn of about 180°, and seemed to be flying slower than before, with no visual anomalies. The witness then saw a cloud of dust as the airplane impacted the ground.
Data from the accident airplane's Garmin GPSMAP 496 indicated that before the abrupt descent, ground speed increased from about 115 knots at 6,700 ft GPS altitude to about 160 knots at 6,200 ft GPS altitude. As the data showed a steep descent trend, ground speed reached 169 knots, and the descent lasted about 14 seconds. Two GoPro cameras installed on the airplane did not capture the accident sequence.
Aircraft Information
The pilot purchased the accident airplane on January 24, 2019. According to the witness, the pilot moved the airplane to Big Spring, Texas, around April 2019. The witness noted that the pilot regularly flew a Commander 114 outside the United States, and this was his first race-type airplane. The witness indicated it took the pilot some time to become accustomed to the airplane's maneuverability. Since purchasing the airplane, the pilot had received aerobatic training and tailwheel training. He made at least three trips to Texas to fly the accident airplane, accumulating an estimated total of 10 flight hours on the aircraft.
Before the accident flight, the pilot mentioned to the witness that he had recently attempted a roll in the airplane but that it did not "go particularly well." They discussed the maneuver and how to enter and recover from it. The accident flight was the first flight after that discussion.
Wreckage and Impact
The wreckage came to rest about 5 miles southwest of BPG in desert-like terrain with vegetation. The debris path extended approximately 100 ft. The first identified point of impact consisted of three ground scars in the dirt, containing fragments of wheel pants, small pieces of the right wingtip, and an engine intake pipe. Additional fragments of wheel pants, fractured wood propeller pieces, and engine exhaust pipes were scattered along the debris path to another ground scar about 5 ft from the main wreckage, which showed three perpendicular slash marks along with engine pieces and the carburetor.
The main wreckage came to rest mostly intact and on its belly. The front fuselage exhibited heavy impact damage. The engine was mostly separated from the firewall and came to rest nose down in the dirt. The wood propeller blades were fractured at the root. The fuel tank was breached, and vegetation below showed evidence of fuel. The left wing was wrinkled throughout at about a 45° angle from outboard to inboard. The aft fuselage had crush and wrinkle damage consistent with impact. The empennage showed crush damage but was otherwise intact. The right wing displayed wrinkle damage throughout, with the inboard wing root crushed aft and the right wingtip separated. Flight control continuity was established throughout the airframe.
Postaccident examination of the engine revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The spark plugs exhibited normal wear, spark was produced when the magnetos were rotated, and drivetrain continuity was established to the accessory section when the crankshaft was rotated by hand. A borescope examination of the engine interior showed normal wear signatures on piston heads, valves, and cylinder walls.