Woodrow Larry W SONEX N7035Z

Summary

On 15 November 2015 at about 19:45 local time, a Woodrow Larry W SONEX registered N7035Z, operated by Woodrow Larry W, was involved in an accident near Morganton, North Carolina, United States. 2 people were 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

15 November 2015 at 19:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Morganton, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Foothills Regional Airport (MRN)

Coordinates

35.8203, -81.6114

Aircraft

Woodrow Larry W SONEX

Registration

N7035Z

Category

Airplane

Year built

2005

Engines

1

Operator

Woodrow Larry W

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lenoir → Lenoir

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA16LA041

Nobody was injured.

The pilot/owner’s inadequate maintenance inspection following a propeller strike, which resulted in the subsequent in-flight propeller separation due to propagation of fatigue cracks in the crankshaft.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot, who was also the owner/builder of the experimental, amateur-built airplane, reported that, during initial climb for the local flight, about 3,000 ft mean sea level, the propeller separated from the airplane and fell to the ground. The pilot/owner turned the airplane toward an airport that had a longer runway than the departure airport and attempted to glide the airplane to the runway. However, the airplane did not have sufficient altitude, and it subsequently impacted trees about 600 ft short of the runway. Photographs of the crankshaft revealed that it fractured just aft of the propeller mounting hub/flange. The fracture surfaces on the hub exhibited features consistent with fatigue crack propagation through the wall thickness of the crankshaft and the subsequent overstress fracture of the remaining portion of the crankshaft. Review of maintenance records revealed that the airplane had sustained a propeller strike about 7 years before the accident. After that event, the pilot/owner, who performed his own maintenance, replaced the propeller; however, he did not disassemble the engine or otherwise document any inspection or replacement of the crankshaft in the airplane's maintenance records.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.