Cessna 182 N3921D

Summary

On 27 September 2015 at about 23:30 local time, a Cessna 182 registered N3921D, operated by Austin Skydiving Center, Inc., was involved in an accident near Lexington, Texas, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

27 September 2015 at 23:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Lexington, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Lexington (TE75)

Coordinates

30.4125, -96.9667

Aircraft

Cessna 182

Registration

N3921D

Category

Airplane

Year built

1957

Engines

1

Operator

Austin Skydiving Center, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Skydiving

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lexington → Lexington

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN15FA427

1 person died.

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed and his exceedance of the airplane’s critical angleofattack during a climbing turn, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall/spin at too low of an altitude to recover.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot was returning the airplane to the departure airport for landing after a skydiving flight. Two witnesses reported observing the pilot fly the airplane over the runway; one witness said it was about 50 ft above ground level (agl), and the other witness said it was about 100 ft agl. One of the witnesses added that, when the airplane reached the end of the runway, it pitched up about 45 degrees, gained about 200 ft of altitude, and then entered a turn with a 45-bank angle. The witness added that, after the airplane had turned about 90 degrees to a westerly heading, its nose dropped, and the airplane "immediately dove." The airplane subsequently entered a left spin and rotated about 180 degrees before impacting trees and then the ground. A second witness noted that the engine sounded like it was at "full throttle" during the descent as if the pilot was attempting to recover from the dive. A postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions. The airplane wreckage was confined to the vicinity of the accident site. Tree breaks in the immediate vicinity of the accident site were consistent with a high-angle descent immediately before impact. Based on the witness statements, it is likely that the pilot intentionally initiated a turning climb but failed to maintain adequate airspeed and exceeded the airplane's critical angle-of-attack, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall/spin from which he could not recover.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.