Van's RV6 N835BC

Summary

On 7 June 2023 at about 14:15 local time, a Van's RV6 registered N835BC was involved in an accident near Colonial Beach, Virginia, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 June 2023 at 14:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Colonial Beach, Virginia, United States

Coordinates

38.1183, -76.9739

Aircraft

Van's RV6

Registration

N835BC

Category

Airplane

Year built

2005

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Colonial Beach → Tappahannock

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA23FA260

2 people died.

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed while maneuvering at low altitude, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and a subsequent aerodynamic stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot and passenger were flying back to their home airport after an overnight stay with some friends. A witness, and friend of the pilot and passenger, stated he watched the airplane as it made two circles around his house. On the second circle, he noticed the airplane was in a very steep bank angle and making a tight circle about 100 ft above the ground. He then noticed the nose of the airplane drop down and the airplane impact the ground in a near-vertical attitude. He stated the engine was running well the entire time. Postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Thus, it is likely that while performing the low altitude circling maneuver, the pilot maintained insufficient airspeed and banked too steeply, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack and a subsequent aerodynamic stall.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.