Brumwell RV-6 N135BB

Summary

On 21 June 2014 at about 01:29 local time, a Brumwell RV-6 registered N135BB was involved in an accident near Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

21 June 2014 at 01:29

Classification

Accident

Location

Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, United States

Nearest airport

St Cloud Regional Airport (STC)

Coordinates

45.5908, -94.1609

Aircraft

Brumwell RV-6

Registration

N135BB

Category

Airplane

Year built

1992

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

St Cloud → St Cloud

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN14FA306

2 people died.

The pilot’s loss of pitch control due to the in-flight opening of the canopy during cruise flight for reasons that could not be determined because fire damage precluded examination of the airplane’s canopy and systems.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

About 5 minutes after the experimental amateur-built RV-6 airplane departed from a local airport, an air traffic controller notified the pilot that an Airbus was 30 miles southwest of the airport and inbound. About 7 minutes later, the pilot reported that he had the Airbus in sight and then stated that he was going to take a picture of it. No further communications were received from the pilot. A witness reported observing the RV-6 "rocking back and forth" before the "nose went down" and then seeing two objects come off the airplane when it entered a descent. Another witness reported hearing engine noise before observing the airplane enter a steep nose-down descent. The airplane impacted a house and was destroyed by a postimpact fire. The two objects that the witness observed coming off the RV-6, which were a headset and PVC material, were later located near the accident site and did not exhibit thermal damage or soot. The exit of the two objects from the airplane's interior indicates that the canopy likely opened in flight, which led to the loss of pitch control. Fire damage precluded examination of the airplane's canopy and systems; therefore, the reason for the canopy opening in flight could not be determined. There was no radar or recorded position and time data for either airplane; therefore, the effects, if any, of wake turbulence from the Airbus on the RV-6 could not be determined.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.