Soneral L2 N9115Y

Summary

On 3 October 2021 at about 21:20 local time, a Soneral L2 registered N9115Y, operated by Jeremy Skalicky, was involved in an accident near Minot, North Dakota, 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

3 October 2021 at 21:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Minot, North Dakota, United States

Nearest airport

Minot Intl (MOT)

Coordinates

48.2576, -101.2780

Aircraft

Soneral L2

Registration

N9115Y

Category

Airplane

Year built

1995

Engines

1

Operator

Jeremy Skalicky

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN22LA007

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s failure to maintain proper airspeed and exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack on final landing approach, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s inexperience with the airplane’s performance, and an oil film on the canopy that obscured the pilot’s visibility.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot prepared for his first flight in the recently acquired airplane, taxied to the runway, and took off. As the airplane climbed into the traffic pattern, the pilot noticed that the engine temperature was high, just under redline. He reduced engine power and the temperature came back to normal.  On final approach, he decided that the approach was not as stable as he would have liked so he decided to execute a go-around. During the go-around, the engine did not seem to have to have much power, and the pilot saw what appeared to be engine oil on the windscreen which obscured his visibility. The pilot decided to land the airplane as soon as possible and executed an abbreviated approach. Just before touchdown on the runway, the airplane stalled and bounced on the runway. The airplane veered off the runway, resulting to structural damage to the forward part of the fuselage and empennage. Examination of the airplane and engine did not reveal any anomalies that could have contributed to the reported partial loss of engine power; however, there was a film of oil on the engine cowl and canopy, which would have obscured the pilot’s forward visibility. It was the pilot’s first flight in the airplane, and he was not familiar with its characteristics and performance. It is likely that, while executing an abbreviated approach, the pilot failed to maintain the proper airspeed, which resulted in the exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and the airplane experiencing an aerodynamic stall and subsequent hard landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.