Interstate S1A N34926

Summary

On 1 May 2010 at about 22:52 local time, a Interstate S1A registered N34926 was involved in an accident near Lakeland, Florida, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 May 2010 at 22:52

Classification

Accident

Location

Lakeland, Florida, United States

Coordinates

28.2503, -81.9200

Aircraft

Interstate S1A

Registration

N34926

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lakeland → Winter Haven

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA10LA251

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from terrain for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After takeoff, the airplane climbed about 500 feet and turned to the left. It subsequently entered a nose-dive configuration and descended rapidly. As the airplane neared the ground, it appeared to assume a level attitude consistent with the pilot recovering from the nose dive. The airplane clipped a tree and landed hard in a field. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed three large propeller strikes along the ground. Flight control continuity was established to all flight control surfaces and examination of the engine and system components revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions. No conclusive physical evidence was found to determine the reason for the sudden loss of altitude and resultant hard landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.