Czech Aircraft Works SPORT CRUISER N602CF

Summary

On 21 July 2008 at about 15:30 local time, a Czech Aircraft Works SPORT CRUISER registered N602CF, operated by Sport Pilot Chicago, was involved in an accident near Newark, Illinois, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

21 July 2008 at 15:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Newark, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Cushing Field Airport (0C8)

Coordinates

41.5194, -88.6056

Aircraft

Czech Aircraft Works SPORT CRUISER

Registration

N602CF

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Sport Pilot Chicago

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Newark → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI08FA196

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane in the landing pattern. Contributing to the severity of injuries was the failure of the pilot's shoulder harness.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The sport pilot departed in a Special – Light Sport Aircraft (S-LSA) from a grass airstrip and impacted the terrain. The accident site was located within the traffic pattern about where the turn from a left downwind to a left base leg would be made. There were no witnesses to the accident and there was no recorded radar track data of the accident flight. The damage to the airplane indicated that it impacted the terrain in about a 30-degree nose-down attitude in a left bank. The inspection of the airframe revealed no preexisting anomalies. The engine was put on an engine test stand and it operated through the full range of rpm settings. The stall speed at the maximum gross weight with wings level and the engine at idle is 39 mph. The inspection of the pilot’s shoulder harness revealed that the single strap of the shoulder harness that attached the harness to the rear cabin bulkhead was separated from the shoulder harness yoke where it was stitched to the shoulder straps. The stitching had failed at the attach point. The accident airplane was classified as a LSA and as such, was not certified by the Federal Aviation Administration. LSA’s are described as “self certifying,” indicating that they are certified as airworthy by the manufacturer. After a review of the pilot’s autopsy findings, it was determined that some of the pilot’s injuries would have been less severe if the shoulder harness had not failed. However, due to the severity of the crash, the resulting injuries were likely to still be fatal.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.