Poulin L/Cullen D LANCAIR LEGACY N109DC

Summary

On 30 May 2008 at about 18:45 local time, a Poulin L/Cullen D LANCAIR LEGACY registered N109DC, operated by Leroy D Poulin, was involved in an accident near Murrieta, California, 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

30 May 2008 at 18:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Murrieta, California, United States

Nearest airport

Frech Valley (F70)

Coordinates

33.5844, -117.1169

Aircraft

Poulin L/Cullen D LANCAIR LEGACY

Registration

N109DC

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Leroy D Poulin

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Murrieta → Murrieta

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA08LA145

2 people died.

The pilot's inadequate preflight planning, which resulted in the loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion, and the pilot's failure to maintain flying speed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin and the subsequent collision with terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot had made multiple touch-and-go landings prior to the accident. Witnesses observed the airplane heading in a southerly direction toward the runway of intended landing before making a hard right turn and subsequently nosing into the ground. One witness said he heard a "loud engine rev" before the engine " died out." A post accident examination of the airplane revealed that the propeller was not under power when it impacted terrain. It was also revealed that the interior of the wings, the wreckage, the vegetation, and the ground did not indicate any signs of a fuel odor or a fuel spill. An examination of the aircraft and engine failed to reveal any preimpact anomalies, which would have precluded normal operation. An FAA inspector reported it appeared that the airplane had run out of fuel and stalled on approach, causing it to enter a spin prior to impacting terrain in a near vertical attitude.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.