Boeing A75N1(PT17) N999PP

Summary

On 27 August 2016 at about 21:25 local time, a Boeing A75N1(PT17) registered N999PP was involved in an accident near Madras, Oregon, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

27 August 2016 at 21:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Madras, Oregon, United States

Nearest airport

Madras Municipal (S33)

Coordinates

44.6692, -121.1533

Aircraft

Boeing A75N1(PT17)

Registration

N999PP

Category

Airplane

Year built

1941

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Air Race/Show

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Madras → Madras

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR16FA169

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from the runway during a low-level aerobatic maneuver. Contributing to the accident was a high density altitude and the pilot's failure to plan/adequately compensate for high density altitude conditions.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

As part of an air show, the commercial pilot was attempting to perform an inside loop immediately after takeoff. He had successfully accomplished the maneuver the previous day, as well as at many previous air shows. Witnesses observed the airplane lift off the runway and remain in a level attitude just above the runway surface before it climbed to perform the loop. Witnesses reported that the airplane descended from the top of the loop to a point in which its pitch attitude was between 10° and 20° nose-down until it impacted the runway. Video footage of the accident indicated that the pilot was in control of the airplane throughout the maneuver, and postaccident examination revealed no evidence of a preimpact mechanical malfunction or failure that would have precluded normal operation. Another performer at the airshow reported that, during the evening practice the day before the accident, he observed the pilot perform the same maneuver, and described it as "sketchy" because of the low altitude at which the pilot completed the loop. He added that he previously asked the pilot how to perform this maneuver and the pilot said that it was a "complete crapshoot"; at the top of the loop, the pilot would decide whether he would "pull through and continue the loop or rollout into a half-Cuban or an Immelmann," both of which are recovery aerobatic maneuvers. Prior to takeoff, the Air Boss reported to the pilot a density altitude (DA) of 4,600 ft. Postaccident calculations revealed that the DA at the time of the accident was about 5,221 ft, both of which are well above a standard day. The high density altitude conditions would have degraded the airplane's overall performance, resulting in decreased engine power available and reduced rate of climb. It is likely that the pilot failed to adequately compensate for the changes in airplane performance due to the high density altitude conditions, which resulted in a collision with terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.