Van's RV 4 N534MM

Summary

On 26 September 2018 at about 19:42 local time, a Van's RV 4 registered N534MM was involved in an accident near Austin, Arkansas, 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

26 September 2018 at 19:42

Classification

Accident

Location

Austin, Arkansas, United States

Coordinates

35.0400, -92.0194

Aircraft

Van's RV 4

Registration

N534MM

Category

Airplane

Year built

1997

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

N Little Rock → N Little Rock

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN18FA389

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control while maneuvering which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and an accelerated stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was conducting a local personal flight to fly over his home; it was the pilot's first flight in the airplane without a flight instructor. According to radar data, the airplane started to descend and the ground speed increased from about 100 knots to about 145 knots just before the airplane flew over the pilot's home. according to a witness, the airplane approached the house and the right wing tipped up, the airplane climbed briefly, and then the airplane rolled inverted, descended, and impacted terrain. Postaccident examination of the airplane and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or anomalies that would have precluded normal operations. The description of the flight sequence is consistent with an accelerated stall when the airplane entered into a left bank as the pilot flew over his home. The pilot had completed a total of 10 hours of instruction in the accident airplane. According to the pilot's flight instructor, most of the pilot's training time consisted of takeoffs and landings and minimal time was spent training maneuvers and performance characteristics.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.