Van's RV-6A N199LH
31 August 2001 · Pagosa Springs, Colorado, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 31 August 2001 at about 19:10 local time, a Van's RV-6A registered N199LH was involved in an accident near Pagosa Springs, Colorado, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 19:10
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Pagosa Springs, Colorado, United States
- Nearest airport
- Pagosa Springs (2V1)
- Coordinates
- 37.2683, -107.0597
- Aircraft
- Van's RV-6A
- Registration
- N199LH
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Pagosa Springs → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- DEN01LA155
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Probable cause
The pilot's inadequate airplane preflight inspection which led to the subsequent lateral control of the airplane on the ground not being possible. A contributing factor was the unavailability of rudder control due to a headset blocking the rudder control mechanism during the takeoff roll.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot was practicing a short field takeoff. He held the brakes and set the engine to 2,650 revolutions per minute. When he released the brakes, the airplane immediately veered to the left and departed the runway. He attempted to apply full right rudder, but no right rudder was available. He said that he attempted to control the airplane with differential braking. The airport manager said that the airplane traveled approximately 350 feet, started down slope and struck an Elk fence (the fence was approximately 250 feet east of the runway). The pilot said that the nose wheel dropped into a ditch which was along the left side of the runway. The airplane's nose gear broke aft and the airplane came to rest in a nose down orientation. Postaccident examination of the airplane by the pilot revealed that a headset on the floor of the airplane had jammed the rudder controls.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Van's RV-6A accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Apr 1999 | Van's RV-6A | Cedar Creek, North Carolina, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 26 Jun 2005 | Van's RV-6A | Trinidad, Colorado, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 23 Jan 2022 | Van's RV-6A | Ciudad-Chihuahua state, Mexico | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 11 May 2026 | Van's RV-6A | Kooskia, Idaho, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 Mar 2001 | Cessna T210L | Howard, Colorado, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 9 Jun 2001 | Luscombe 8E | Longmont, Colorado, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 9 Sep 2001 | Boeing A75N1 (PT17) | Watkins, Colorado, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 10 Nov 2001 | Esbenshade STARDUSTER TOO SA300 | Evans, Colorado, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 23 Aug 2001 | Aviat A-1 | Montrose, Colorado, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 28 Aug 2001 | Bradley RANS S-7 | Fruita, Colorado, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |