Lantzair Flyers LANCAIR 360 N3603R

Summary

On 2 January 2009 at about 02:48 local time, a Lantzair Flyers LANCAIR 360 registered N3603R, operated by Stuart Seffern, was involved in an accident near Joliet, Illinois, 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

2 January 2009 at 02:48

Classification

Accident

Location

Joliet, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Joliet Regional Airport (JOT)

Coordinates

41.5183, -88.1814

Aircraft

Lantzair Flyers LANCAIR 360

Registration

N3603R

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Stuart Seffern

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Joliet → Watertown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

CEN09FA111

2 people died.

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate flying speed during the night takeoff for undetermined reasons, which resulted in an inadvertent aerodynamic stall and subsequent loss of control

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot landed with 4 to 5 gallons of fuel on board following a 4.5-hour cross-country flight. After landing, the pilot made numerous attempts to locate fuel in order to continue the flight so that his passenger could be at work in the morning. The pilot left a note and money after having siphoned fuel from another airplane parked at the airport. After about 2 hours and 45 minutes on the ground, the airplane took off again. Impact marks indicate that the airplane stalled during the takeoff, impacting the terrain with the left wing prior to catching fire and coming to rest inverted. The accident occurred at night as the airplane was departing on the second leg of a cross-country flight. Calculations show that the airplane was slightly over the maximum gross takeoff weight and the center of gravity (CG) was slightly aft of the aft limit at the time of the accident. A pilot of another single-engine airplane, who landed a few minutes after the accident airplane landed, and who took off about 30 minutes later (which would have been about 2 hours before the accident) reported that he had to wipe a “slight frost buildup” off of his wings and tail with a towel prior to takeoff. The investigation could not determine whether the slight frost, slight overgross condition, or slight aft CG contributed, either individually or in combination, to the aerodynamic stall of the airplane. Additionally, several people reported that it was not uncommon to see deer on the airport property and one person reported seeing many deer on the runway earlier in the day prior to when the pilot landed; however the investigation could not determine whether deer were present on the runway at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.