Hill EUROPA XS N214KS

Summary

On 16 June 2007 at about 15:30 local time, a Hill EUROPA XS registered N214KS was involved in an accident near Livermore, California, 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

16 June 2007 at 15:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Livermore, California, United States

Nearest airport

Livermore Municipal Airport (LVK)

Coordinates

37.6933, -121.8203

Aircraft

Hill EUROPA XS

Registration

N214KS

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Livermore → Yosemite

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX07LA148

2 people died.

the loss of engine power for an undetermined reason during the initial climb, and the pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed while attempting a return to runway maneuver, which resulted in a stall/spin.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Witnesses observed the airplane reach about 300 to 400 feet above ground level (agl) in the initial climb as it approached the departure end of the runway. The airplane then descended about 100 feet as one witness heard the engine begin to sputter, and then lost power. The airplane made a hard left turn and continued to descend while reversing course, consistent with the pilot attempting to return to the runway. As the airplane came close to completing a 180-degree turn, the airplane stalled and dove toward terrain. The airplane impacted in a near-vertical attitude and erupted into flames. The pilot, who was the airplane's builder, had amassed about 300 hours in the accident airplane. The terrain at the end of the departure runway was characteristically flat, stretching over 6,500 feet beyond the runway, and consisted of a golf course and open fields. Investigators found no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures during the examination; however, the extremely impact damaged and thermally consumed wreckage precluded many components and systems from being inspected. An article in the EAA Sport Aviation newsletter detailed the flight characteristics of an Europa that was configured similar to the accident airplane. In pertinent part, it stated that stalls, both with level flight and idle power, are abrupt with a 5- to 10-degree nose drop accompanied by a 5-degree right wing drop. The article reported that there is virtually no traditional stall warning, such as airframe buffeting.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.