Kenneth M Franz ULTRA PUP N106KF

Summary

On 7 October 2013 at about 18:45 local time, a Kenneth M Franz ULTRA PUP registered N106KF was involved in an accident near Belleville, Texas, United States. One person was on board and 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

7 October 2013 at 18:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Belleville, Texas, United States

Coordinates

29.9408, -96.2450

Aircraft

Kenneth M Franz ULTRA PUP

Registration

N106KF

Category

Airplane

Year built

2013

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Bellville → Bellville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN14LA003

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed and his exceedance of the airplane's critical angle-of-attack while turning back to the airport instead of landing straight ahead following a partial loss of engine power, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and loss of control. The reason for the partial loss of engine power could be not determined based on the available information.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot was taking off for a personal flight. The pilot reported that, just after takeoff, the engine started having problems and that the "motor was coming in and out." He attempted to return to the airport, but as he was turning the airplane, it departed controlled flight and subsequently impacted a field just west of the airport. An on-scene examination of the airplane revealed that it had impacted the ground in a nose-low attitude. The airplane's right wing and main landing gear were separated from the fuselage, and two blades of the three-bladed propeller were broken off at the hub. About 10 gallons of fuel was found in the two wing tanks, which held about 14 gallons. Due to a federal government shutdown at the time of the accident, the engine was not retained, and a follow-on examination of the engine was not conducted. It is likely that, during the turn back to the airport following the partial loss of engine power, the pilot failed to maintain adequate airspeed and exceeded the airplane's critical angle-of-attack, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.