Tail Feather SEA REY N969TF

Summary

On 29 November 2009 at about 18:30 local time, a Tail Feather SEA REY registered N969TF was involved in an accident near Sanibel Island, Florida, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 November 2009 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Sanibel Island, Florida, United States

Coordinates

26.4489, -82.0222

Aircraft

Tail Feather SEA REY

Registration

N969TF

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Pine Island → Pine Island

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA10LA085

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot’s failure to add power during a low-level turn, which resulted in a loss of airspeed and a subsequent stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was flying about 100 feet above the surface of the water, 300 to 400 feet offshore. As he entered a 180-degree turn he forgot to add power and the airplane lost 70 feet of altitude. The pilot then completed the turn about 30 feet above the water and at 40 miles per hour airspeed, and felt that “adding power did not seem appropriate” as he was “heading toward the beach with people everywhere.” The pilot then elected to allow the airplane to stall and crash into the water. A wreckage examination was conducted by the responding Federal Aviation Administration inspector who found no prexisting mechanical abnormalities or failures with the airplane.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.