Czech Sport Aircraft A S SPORTCRUISER N823MM

Summary

On 25 March 2022 at about 00:45 local time, a Czech Sport Aircraft A S SPORTCRUISER registered N823MM was involved in an accident near Lanark, New Mexico, 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

25 March 2022 at 00:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Lanark, New Mexico, United States

Coordinates

31.9841, -106.8097

Aircraft

Czech Sport Aircraft A S SPORTCRUISER

Registration

N823MM

Category

Airplane

Year built

2015

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Santa Teresa → Santa Teresa

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR22LA137

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot’s loss of control of the airplane after the inadvertent unlocking and opening of the canopy for reasons that could not be determined based on available evidence.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was performing a power-off stall at about 6,500 ft mean sea level during a personal flight. He stated that, as the nose of the airplane dropped, the left canopy latch “let loose.” About 4 to 5 seconds later, the right canopy latch “let go,” and the entire windscreen “popped up like a speed brake.” The airplane’s pitch remained nose down, and the airplane impacted terrain, substantially damaging the left wing and fuselage. Postaccident examination of the wreckage found no preimpact anomalies with the canopy or canopy operating system. Although the pilot reported that the left-side latch came loose before the right-side latch, the examination found that the locking mechanisms engaged and disengaged from both sides of the canopy at the same time when the canopy locking handle was lowered and raised. Examination of the canopy locking system showed that the canopy locking handle required about 1/4 inch of upward movement from the locked and stowed position for the locking mechanisms to reach an over-center position that effectively unlocked the canopy. The accident circumstances were consistent with the pilot’s loss of control of the airplane during flight after the inadvertent unlocking and opening of the canopy. The reason that the canopy locking handle became unstowed during the accident flight could not be determined based on the available evidence from the investigation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.