Diamond DA20 N561CS

Summary

On 25 April 2009 at about 21:20 local time, a Diamond DA20 registered N561CS, operated by Savannah Aviation Inc., was involved in an accident near Townsend, Georgia, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

25 April 2009 at 21:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Townsend, Georgia, United States

Nearest airport

Eagle Neck Airport (1GA0)

Coordinates

31.6381, -81.3264

Aircraft

Diamond DA20

Registration

N561CS

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Savannah Aviation Inc.

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Savannah → Townsend

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA09CA268

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during a landing roll with a crosswind. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of experience in the make and model airplane.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane impacted a tree as the pilot was performing an aborted landing during his second attempt to land on Runway 2. The pilot reported encountering turbulence while en route and on approach. The recorded wind at an airport located 19 nautical miles northwest of the accident airport, about the time of the accident, was from 140 degrees at 8 knots. Runway 2 was 3,475 feet long, 41 feet wide, and was surrounded by trees. Winds at the airport were from the east at approximately 10 knots, as estimated by the pilot, and during the landing roll the airplane veered west of the runway centerline. The pilot applied right rudder; however, he was unable to correct for the drift. He subsequently added power to perform another aborted landing, but the airplane continued to track west and impacted a tree. The airplane received substantial damage to the horizontal stabilizer and the rear empennage sheared off from the fuselage. The pilot did not report any preimpact mechanical malfunctions. He reported 169 hours of total flight experience; of which, 3 hours were in the accident airplane.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.