Chester GLASAIR RG N127E

Summary

On 24 July 1996 at about 02:15 local time, a Chester GLASAIR RG registered N127E was involved in an accident near Lafayette, Louisiana, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

24 July 1996 at 02:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Lafayette, Louisiana, United States

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Chester GLASAIR RG

Registration

N127E

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

San Antonio → Winnsboro

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

FTW96FA319

2 people died.

failure of the pilot to maintain proper altitude (and clearance above wooded terrain), while diverting to an alternate destination. Factors relating to the accident were: the loss of the comm/nav equipment as a result of an electrostatic discharge, darkness, the lack of visual cues (dark hole effect), and the pilot's lack of experience in the Glasair RG.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot had received a two hour check out in the Glasair RG kit-built airplane on 6/23/96, then he next flew it on the day of the accident (7/23/96). He was receiving VFR flight following from Houston Center and was detouring around an area of thunderstorm activity, when radar contact was lost about 5 miles northwest of Lafayette, Louisiana. Three days later, the aircraft was located east of the Lafayette Regional Airport, about 5 miles from the end of runway 29. Impact occurred in an unpopulated, unlit, and densely wooded area. Examination of the accident area revealed that the aircraft initially impacted trees in a shallow descent, while on a heading of 345 degrees. Glasair pilots reported that static discharges are relatively common and discharges always interfere with the comm/nav radios, sometimes causing damage. Examination of the airplane's radios revealed the comm/nav radios had numerous shorted circuits. An examination of a navigational light bulb revealed the filament had melted and that the metal had pooled, but there was no elongation of the filament. Examination of the aircraft and engine did not disclose any pre-mishap discrepancy.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.