Top Dog TD2 N71314

Summary

On 27 August 2012 at about 23:47 local time, a Top Dog TD2 registered N71314 was involved in an accident near Bemidji, Minnesota, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, 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

27 August 2012 at 23:47

Classification

Accident

Location

Bemidji, Minnesota, United States

Nearest airport

Moberg Air Base Airport (MN13)

Coordinates

47.4961, -94.9528

Aircraft

Top Dog TD2

Registration

N71314

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bemidji → Bemidji

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN12LA584

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control and his inadequate flare during landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s failure to obtain training on the operation of the accident aircraft.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was returning to the airport after a local flight with a passenger. The passenger stated that when the pilot entered the final approach for the runway, he established a steep nose down descent and a right bank angle, and the aircraft flew straight into the ground. The passenger stated that the pilot did not appear to struggle to maintain or regain control and that he did not give any other indication of a problem. The passenger did not observe any indication of a malfunction of the powerplant or flight controls. Additionally, postaccident examination did not reveal any mechanical issues or anomalies with the aircraft that would have precluded normal operations. Records indicated that the pilot had recently purchased and had about 2 hours of flight time in the weight-shift-control aircraft. There was no indication that he had received any type of transition training regarding the differences between this aircraft and the certificated tricycle gear airplane in which most of his recent flight experience was accumulated.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.