Curtiss-Wright P-40N N740RB

Summary

On 5 April 2009 at about 17:25 local time, a Curtiss-Wright P-40N registered N740RB, operated by Leestown Aviation Warhawk Inc, was involved in an accident near Mastic Beach, New York, 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

5 April 2009 at 17:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Mastic Beach, New York, United States

Coordinates

40.7072, -72.8514

Aircraft

Curtiss-Wright P-40N

Registration

N740RB

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Leestown Aviation Warhawk Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Shirley → Shirley

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA09LA233

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed while performing aerobatics at low altitude.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot's son said that he and his father were an airshow "team," that the purpose of the flight was to practice aerobatics in their World War Two-era fighter, and that he would act as a "safety guide" from the beach with a handheld radio. The pilot's son stated that all communications with the accident airplane were "normal." The airplane entered a "half Cuban eight" maneuver at an estimated 250 to 260 mph and when the airplane was "in the middle of the Cuban eight it went into a spin." The pilot's son estimated that the airplane had slowed to 100 to 120 mph--which was, according to him, "too slow"--when the airplane entered the spin and lacked the altitude to recover before crashing into the sea. A former Army fighter pilot witness described a similar sequence of events and stated that he thought the pilot was attempting an "Immelman" turn and added, "I knew he was in trouble when he didn't complete the Immelman turn and went off on one wing. The plane made 4 to 5 revolutions and augured into the ocean." The witness stated that no parts departed the airplane at anytime during the flight or accident sequence. A third and fourth witness provided similar accounts. The wreckage was not recovered from the ocean.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.