Maxair DRIFTER UNREG

Summary

On 13 November 2021 at about 16:50 local time, a Maxair DRIFTER registered UNREG was involved in an accident near Sebring, Florida, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 November 2021 at 16:50

Classification

Accident

Location

Sebring, Florida, United States

Nearest airport

Sebring Rgnl (SEF)

Coordinates

27.4468, -81.3573

Aircraft

Maxair DRIFTER

Registration

UNREG

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA22LA062

1 person was seriously injured.

The non-certificated pilot’s decision to operate the airplane without flight training or a pilot certificate and his loss of control shortly after takeoff, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall at low altitude and collision with terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The non-certificated pilot reported that as, he maneuvered the airplane to land in an open field, his flight path was nearing people and a building, so he added power, however too much power was added. This resulted in the nose of the airplane pitching up rapidly, which was followed by an aerodynamic stall and a nose low impact in the field. The airplane’s tail boom, fuselage, and wings sustained substantial damage. A video taken from the ground captured nearly the entire accident flight. Its contents largely corroborate the pilot’s account of what happened. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane. He further reported that the accident flight was only his second flight in the airplane and he had not received any flight training to fly this airplane prior to flight. He believed the airplane was an “ultralight”, however, due to the fuel tanks size and number of seats, it did not meet the criteria stated in Code of Federal Regulations Part 103.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.