Steele Samuel D RV-4 N107SS

Summary

On 15 January 2010 at about 20:50 local time, a Steele Samuel D RV-4 registered N107SS was involved in an accident near Picayune, Mississippi, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

15 January 2010 at 20:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Picayune, Mississippi, United States

Nearest airport

Mint Julep Airpark (5MS5)

Coordinates

30.5556, -89.4558

Aircraft

Steele Samuel D RV-4

Registration

N107SS

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Picayune → Picayune

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA10LA120

2 people died.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin. Contributing to the accident was the overweight and aft-center-of-gravity condition of the airplane at takeoff.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

According to a witness, the pilot was preparing the accident airplane for a test flight after replacing a ground wire in the avionics. The pilot and passenger boarded the airplane, the engine started, and they made a normal departure to the north. Another witness observed the airplane shortly after it departed. He noticed that the airplane was low and that it appeared that it was about to perform trick-type maneuvers. The airplane rolled to the left and pitched down, impacting the ground shortly thereafter. A postaccident examination of the wreckage and accident site revealed that impact damage signatures on the nose, wings, and fuselage were consistent with a stall and spin, fragmentation of the propeller consistent with engine operation at impact. Weight and balance calculations were performed using weight and balance documents recovered at the site and the actual weights of the occupants. Calculations revealed the airplane was loaded about 250 pounds in excess of the experimental amateur-built kit manufacturer's recommended maximum gross weight, and that that the center of gravity was located more than .25 inches aft of the envelope for the maximum gross weight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.