Rans S-7 N55893

Summary

On 6 October 2020 at about 22:33 local time, a Rans S-7 registered N55893 was involved in an accident near Spirit Lake, Idaho, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, 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

6 October 2020 at 22:33

Classification

Accident

Location

Spirit Lake, Idaho, United States

Nearest airport

Treeport Airport (ID22)

Coordinates

47.9802, -116.7863

Aircraft

Rans S-7

Registration

N55893

Category

Airplane

Year built

2008

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Spirit Lake → Sagle

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR21LA011

1 person died.

The pilot’s exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack during the initial climb after takeoff, 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 and pilot-rated passenger were departing from a grass runway. The passenger stated that the airplane remained in ground effect for a large duration of the takeoff and then climbed above the treeline. At an altitude of about 75 ft above ground level, the airplane’s left wing stalled, and the airplane collided with terrain. Analysis of video of the accident takeoff and GPS data indicated that the airplane’s wing reached its critical angle of attack before it began to lose altitude and descend into terrain. Sound spectrum analysis of the engine indicated that it was producing power at the time of the accident. Given the weights of the pilot, passenger, and fuel onboard, the airplane was under its maximum gross weight and within its center-of-gravity limits at the time of the accident. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with the pilot’s exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack during the initial climb, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and loss of control.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.