Board James A ZENITH 601 HD N740JB

Summary

On 7 August 2015 at about 23:10 local time, a Board James A ZENITH 601 HD registered N740JB was involved in an accident near Danville, Kentucky, United States. One person was 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

7 August 2015 at 23:10

Classification

Accident

Location

Danville, Kentucky, United States

Nearest airport

Stuart Powell Field (DVK)

Coordinates

37.5775, -84.7694

Aircraft

Board James A ZENITH 601 HD

Registration

N740JB

Category

Airplane

Year built

2014

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Flight Test

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Danville → Danville

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA15LA304

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's improper adjustment of the propeller blade angle, which resulted in inadequate engine thrust, and his decision to continue the takeoff despite the excessively long takeoff roll.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot, who also the owner/builder of the experimental, amateur-built airplane, was conducting the airplane's first test flight. The pilot stated that, during the takeoff roll, the airplane used about half of the runway surface, or five times the distance of a nominal takeoff roll, before becoming airborne. He added that the airplane then climbed to about 350 ft, at which point the flight controls began to feel "mushy." The airplane then entered a descent and impacted wires and trees before coming to rest in an open field. The pilot reported that the engine was producing full power throughout the flight but that the airplane would neither climb nor maintain altitude. Postaccident examination and testing of the airplane revealed that the pilot had likely misread the propeller adjustment tool when installing and adjusting the pitch of the ground-adjustable propeller and had inadvertently set the blades to an extremely low pitch. The low pitch of the propeller blades resulted in inadequate engine thrust, as evidenced by the long takeoff roll and the airplane's inability to climb.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.