Edge 540 N541TW

Summary

On 11 October 2001 at about 01:00 local time, a Edge 540 registered N541TW was involved in an accident near San Juan Capist, California, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

11 October 2001 at 01:00

Classification

Accident

Location

San Juan Capist, California, United States

Coordinates

33.3667, -117.6000

Aircraft

Edge 540

Registration

N541TW

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Santa Ana → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX02FA003

1 person died.

the pilot's failure to maintain an adequate terrain/object altitude clearance while intentionally performing low level aerobatics, which resulted in a loss of aircraft control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Part of the left aileron separated after the aerobatic airplane collided with trees, and then the airplane impacted terrain in a near vertical descent. The pilot was going to perform at an airshow the following day. He was going to practice his aerobatic routine on this flight. The outboard half of the left aileron was on top of a hill about 3,000 feet east of the main wreckage, near broken branches at the base of a tree. Located near the outboard aileron were the transponder antenna, the left side windows, and the left aileron spade arm. The transponder antenna had been installed on the bottom of the airplane and forward of the aileron. The canopy was about 800 feet east of the main wreckage. Half of the canopy frame was in a tree; the other half was on the ground below. Shards of Plexiglas remained in the frame pieces. The main wreckage was on top of another hill in open grassy terrain. The main wreckage was within about a 50-foot circle. The pilot was outside of the cockpit, and away from the main wreckage. He was wearing a parachute. It was still folded in the pack; however, some shroud lines had snagged on the engine. The pilot also wore a helmet.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.