Cooper Michael C RV 8A N393MC

Summary

On 2 September 2015 at about 18:03 local time, a Cooper Michael C RV 8A registered N393MC was involved in an accident near Advance, North Carolina, 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

2 September 2015 at 18:03

Classification

Accident

Location

Advance, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Twin Lakes Airport (8A7)

Coordinates

35.9144, -80.4622

Aircraft

Cooper Michael C RV 8A

Registration

N393MC

Category

Airplane

Year built

2001

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Advance → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA15FA335

2 people died.

The pilots' failure to maintain airplane control during a low-altitude maneuver.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilots, who co-owned the airplane, departed for a personal flight and, after completing one circuit around the airport traffic pattern, were performing a low-altitude, high-speed pass over the runway. About halfway down the runway length, the airplane entered a barrel roll to the left and, after passing through 180 degrees of roll, began a descent that continued to ground contact. Postaccident examination of the flight controls revealed no evidence of preimpact failure or malfunction. Although the rear seat flight control stick was found separated and had not been properly secured in compliance with a service bulletin, it was damaged in a manner consistent with the impact and likely did not contribute to a loss of control. The pilots' decision to perform aerobatic maneuvers at low altitude significantly diminished their margin for error, and once the airplane began to descend while maneuvering, the pilots likely did not have adequate time to recover before impacting the ground.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.