Bumford GR-7 N555GR

Summary

On 17 March 1996 at about 18:00 local time, a Bumford GR-7 registered N555GR, operated by Gregory T. Riddle, was involved in an accident near Temecula, California, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

17 March 1996 at 18:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Temecula, California, United States

Nearest airport

French Valley (F70)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Bumford GR-7

Registration

N555GR

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Gregory T. Riddle

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX96LA137

1 person died.

failure of the pilot to maintain control of the airplane, while performing an aerobatic maneuver, which resulted in inadvertent entry into a spin. Factors relating to the accident were: the pilot's lack of recent experience in fixed wing aircraft, his lack of experience in the make and model of airplane, and the lack of altitude to recover from an inadvertent spin.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot had recently purchased the airplane, and reportedly, this was his first flight in the plane. Witnesses stated the airplane took off and climbed to about 2,000 feet agl in the traffic pattern. The airplane was observed to maneuver through a full right roll and recover; then it entered a 2-turn spin to the right. Witnesses said the spin stopped, then started again, this time to the left. The left spin continued to ground impact. No discrepancies were identified during an examination of the wreckage. The pilot was a military aviator assigned to fly Sikorsky CH53E helicopters. A review of available pilot records did not disclosed evidence of recent fixed-wing flight activity.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.