Lancair 360 N163DS

Summary

On 10 September 2004 at about 19:40 local time, a Lancair 360 registered N163DS was involved in an accident near Orange, Texas, 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

10 September 2004 at 19:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Orange, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Orange County (ORG)

Coordinates

30.0692, -93.8036

Aircraft

Lancair 360

Registration

N163DS

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Orange → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW04LA236

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed during takeoff resulting in an inadvertent stall and loss of aircraft control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

A 642-hour pilot departed from an airfield and announced that he would be circling around the traffic pattern to make a low pass. A witness stated that he observed the airplane as it approached the runway with the landing gear extended. The witness described the airplane's speed as "moderate" as it passed over the runway at a height of 50 feet above the ground. As the airplane reached the end of the runway it began to climb at a pitch attitude of approximately 10-15 degrees. As the witness began to enter a building, he looked back toward the departure end of the runway and saw the airplane in a rapid descent. It was approximately 600 feet above the ground, the nose of the airplane was pitched down about 30 degrees, and it was in a 10-15 degree right bank. When the airplane was approximately 100-150 feet above the ground, the witness stated the airplane pitched up (about five degrees) and the wings leveled out, but it still continued to descend. The witness did not hear any engine noise during this time. The nose of the airplane continued to pitch up and it banked slightly to the left as it descended behind a tree line. He then heard the engine "roar to what sounded like full power," followed by the sound of an impact. The pilot's total flight time in the make and model could not be determined; however, it was determined that the pilot had recently purchased the airplane as the registration was still pending.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.