Goodyear F2G N5577N

Summary

On 7 September 2012 at about 22:55 local time, a Goodyear F2G registered N5577N was involved in an accident near Valley City, North Dakota, 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

7 September 2012 at 22:55

Classification

Accident

Location

Valley City, North Dakota, United States

Nearest airport

Barnes County Municipal (BAC)

Coordinates

46.9411, -98.0181

Aircraft

Goodyear F2G

Registration

N5577N

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Air Race/Show

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Valley City → Valley City

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN12LA615

1 person died.

The pilot’s decision to initiate the aerobatic maneuver at an altitude that did not allow for full recovery of the airplane before ground impact.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Witnesses reported that the pilot completed the initial portion of his airshow practice routine without any apparent difficulties. One witness noted that during those maneuvers, the airplane reached altitudes of about 2,000 feet above ground level (agl). The pilot then executed a four-point roll. The witnesses stated that the airplane pitched up and rolled to the left, as if the pilot were entering a barrel roll. However, the airplane only reached an altitude of about 1,000 feet agl during this maneuver. When the airplane was inverted, the roll stopped, and the airplane pitched down toward the ground. One witness noted that vapor trails were visible from the wing tips during the attempted pull out. The airplane subsequently impacted the ground in a nearly level attitude. The airplane was severely fragmented during the accident sequence and the debris field was extensive. No anomalies consistent with preimpact mechanical failure or malfunction were observed during postaccident examination, but the extent of the impact-related damage to the airframe precluded a complete examination of the flight control system. However, witness statements were consistent with the pilot initiating the final aerobatic maneuver from an altitude that did not allow full recovery of the airplane. Toxicological tests identified ethanol in the pilot’s tissue samples; however, it is likely that the ethanol detected was due to postmortem production.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.