Bordelon KITFOX IV N396BK

Summary

On 7 June 2010 at about 15:05 local time, a Bordelon KITFOX IV registered N396BK was involved in an accident near Stanton, Minnesota, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 June 2010 at 15:05

Classification

Accident

Location

Stanton, Minnesota, United States

Nearest airport

Stanton Airfield (KSYN)

Coordinates

44.4756, -93.0164

Aircraft

Bordelon KITFOX IV

Registration

N396BK

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Stanton → Stanton

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN10CA304

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadvertent propeller blade pitch change and subsequent loss of forward thrust.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The accident occurred during the first flight since the experimental amateur-built airplane had been repaired from a previous accident. The pilot stated that after departure he performed two landings without incident. On the third landing attempt, the in-flight electrically adjustable propeller went into a low/flat pitch while the airplane was on an extended final approach. The pilot stated that the airplane lost forward thrust as result of the flat propeller blade pitch and that he landed short of the turf runway. The airplane subsequently nosed over and came to rest inverted; the fuselage and empennage were substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane. He stated that the flat propeller pitch may have been inadvertently set during flight when he mistakenly depressed the propeller pitch selector instead of the intended push-to-talk button. Both buttons were collocated on the control stick.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.