Kaufmann VANS RV-10 N104BK

Summary

On 31 December 2012 at about 20:30 local time, a Kaufmann VANS RV-10 registered N104BK, operated by Robert Kaufmann, was involved in an accident near Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. 2 people were 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

31 December 2012 at 20:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Nearest airport

North Las Vegas Airport (VGT)

Coordinates

36.2106, -115.1944

Aircraft

Kaufmann VANS RV-10

Registration

N104BK

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Robert Kaufmann

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Reno → Las Vegas

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR13LA093

Nobody was injured.

A missing elevator control assembly attachment bolt, which rendered the elevator control system ineffective and resulted in a loss of pitch control, and the pilot’s incorrect installation of the elevator control assembly.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot, who was also the owner and builder of the airplane, reported that, while on short final, he lost elevator control and was unable to control the airplane's pitch. The pilot continued the landing, but he was unable to flare the airplane, which resulted in a hard landing. The airplane bounced once and then came back down on its nose. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the attachment bolt for the elevator control assembly was missing. The airplane manufacturer's maintenance instructions called for two washers and an elastic stop nut to secure the elevator assembly attachment bolt. It is likely that the pilot did not properly install or secure the hardware used to attach the bolt, which allowed it to release in flight and rendered the elevator control system ineffective and led to the subsequent loss of pitch control. The airplane had accumulated a total time of 48 hours.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.