Nichols LANCAIR 235 N777BN

Summary

On 25 August 2011 at about 22:56 local time, a Nichols LANCAIR 235 registered N777BN was involved in an accident near Heath, Ohio, 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

25 August 2011 at 22:56

Classification

Accident

Location

Heath, Ohio, United States

Nearest airport

Newark-Heath Airport (VTA)

Coordinates

40.0217, -82.4636

Aircraft

Nichols LANCAIR 235

Registration

N777BN

Category

Airplane

Year built

1990

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Heath → Heath

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN11FA597

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to obtain adequate familiarization with the accident airplane type before the accident flight, which resulted in his failure to maintain airplane control during takeoff.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The accident occurred during the pilot's first flight in the experimental amateur-built airplane since he purchased it about 1 year earlier. A witness stated that the airplane appeared to be "very unstable" after it became airborne. He stated that the airplane continued to fly erratically, with continuous attitude changes, and cleared a row of airport hangars by about 10 feet. The airplane then continued the climb to between 100 and 150 feet above the ground before it banked sharply left and entered a nose-down descent into trees. The witness stated that the engine sounded normal throughout the entire flight. A postaccident examination of the airport property revealed that the airplane had veered off the left side of the runway before it became airborne. The postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that, because this was the pilot's first flight in the airplane and he had not logged any flights in a similar airplane, he failed to maintain directional control during takeoff and did not subsequently gain control.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.