Accident Details
On April 6, 2021, at about 1500 eastern daylight time, an experimental, amateur-built Bushby Mustang M II, registration N61EF, was substantially damaged during an accident near Worcester, Massachusetts. The flight instructor and the pilot, who was the new owner of the airplane, were not injured. The flight was conducted as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight.
The commercial pilot stated that he hired the flight instructor to ferry the airplane from Fresno, California, to Worcester Regional Airport (ORH) in Worcester, Massachusetts. Following the ferry, the flight instructor was to provide the pilot with 3 hours of dual flight instruction before his insurance coverage would take effect.
On the day of the accident, the flight instructor had the pilot perform three high-speed taxis to demonstrate directional control. Satisfied with the control, the instructor cleared the pilot for flight. During the takeoff roll, at about 6 feet above ground level, the airplane began a roll to the right. The pilot attempted to apply left aileron but found the control stick would not move to the left. He alerted the flight instructor, and both tried to move the stick left, but it remained immovable. The pilot aborted the takeoff and landed the airplane in the grass to the right side of the runway. Upon touchdown, both main landing gears collapsed, and the airplane slid to a stop. The occupants shut down the electrical system, turned off the fuel, and egressed the airplane.
The flight instructor's account was consistent with the pilot's.
Wreckage Examination
A Federal Aviation Administration inspector examined the wreckage. Attempts to cycle the control stick were unsuccessful due to binding when moving to the left. Inspection of the left aileron bellcrank and push/pull rod revealed that the rod was contacting the access hole in the aft spar. The rivets securing the threaded insert into the rod were contacting the edge of the spar, causing binding. After disconnecting the left aileron push/pull rod from the bellcrank, the control stick moved freely through its full range of motion.