Lazear John T ZENAIR STOL CH 701 N3846T

Summary

On 11 April 2017 at about 14:30 local time, a Lazear John T ZENAIR STOL CH 701 registered N3846T was involved in an accident near Windsor Twp, Pennsylvania, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

11 April 2017 at 14:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Windsor Twp, Pennsylvania, United States

Coordinates

39.9431, -76.5928

Aircraft

Lazear John T ZENAIR STOL CH 701

Registration

N3846T

Category

Airplane

Year built

2000

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Windsor Twp → Lancaster

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA17CA152

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's improper pretakeoff planning, his failure to maintain adequate airspeed, and his exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack during a short-field takeoff with a tailwind, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot of the experimental, amateur-built airplane reported that he attempted to take off on a grass portion of his property that extended about 1,000 ft before reaching power lines. During takeoff on an approximate 130° heading, he noticed the airplane was not climbing fast enough to clear the power lines. He pulled up "hard" to clear the power lines but stalled the airplane. The left wing dipped down, and the airplane impacted the ground. The right wing separated from the fuselage, and the empennage was crushed behind the wings. Both main landing gear separated from the fuselage, and the nose landing gear folded back under the engine compartment. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or anomalies with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. He added that he thought the wind was swirling and that the airplane may have encountered some wind shear. The recorded wind at an airport located about 13 miles west of the accident site, about the time of the accident, was from 320° at 4 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.