Extra Flugzeugbau EA 300/L N300BB

Summary

On 4 October 2006 at about 19:25 local time, a Extra Flugzeugbau EA 300/L registered N300BB was involved in an accident near Tucumcari, New Mexico, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

4 October 2006 at 19:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Tucumcari, New Mexico, United States

Nearest airport

Tucumcari Muni (TCC)

Coordinates

35.1828, -103.6003

Aircraft

Extra Flugzeugbau EA 300/L

Registration

N300BB

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Air Race/Show

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Tucumcari → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DEN07FA003

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control during aerobatic flight, resulting in an inadvertent accelerated stall. Contributing factors include the low altitude for recovery from the loop and the high density altitude.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was just exiting a loop close to the ground when, according to multiple witnesses, the wings began to shake back and forth. One witness reported that it appeared as if the airplane was rocking. According to a cameraman recording the performance, the pilot did not "start his pull until he was too low to recover." He stated, "When the plane passed overhead, the noise the air was making as it passed over sounded very interrupted or turbulent." The cameraman noted, "There was a definitive break in the wing flight, a dip or stall, as it passed by." The airplane impacted the ground and came to rest to the south of the runway. An examination of the airplane, engine, and related systems revealed no anomalies. Winds at the time of the accident were reported as 060 degrees at 15 knots gusting to 20 knots. Density altitude was calculated to be 5,700 feet.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.