Andrews ZODIAC N999NA

Summary

On 29 March 2013 at about 19:46 local time, a Andrews ZODIAC registered N999NA, operated by David T Richardson, was involved in an accident near Collegedale, Tennessee, United States. 2 people were on board and one died. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

29 March 2013 at 19:46

Classification

Accident

Location

Collegedale, Tennessee, United States

Coordinates

35.0444, -85.0200

Aircraft

Andrews ZODIAC

Registration

N999NA

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

David T Richardson

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Collegedale → Collegedale

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA13LA183

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to ensure that his seatbelt was fastened and the pilots' failure to ensure that the canopy was latched properly, which resulted in the pilot's ejection from the cockpit following the opening of the canopy and the subsequent in-flight upset.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot had recently purchased the experimental amateur-built airplane and was not familiar with it. The flight instructor reported that, before the pilot's first instructional flight in the airplane, they were unable to start the engine. The pilot unlatched and raised the canopy to call for assistance from ground personnel. As the ground person started to attach the battery charger to the engine, the pilot unbuckled his seatbelt to assist; however, the ground person told the pilot that he did not need to get out of the airplane. The pilot then hastily attempted to refasten his seatbelt, and the pilots lowered the canopy. The flight instructor stated that the canopy appeared to be flush with the fuselage and latched properly; however, about 9 minutes into the flight, the canopy opened, and the airplane entered a negative G dive, at which point, the pilot was pulled out of his seat and the airplane. The flight instructor remained in his seat with the seatbelt fastened and landed the airplane uneventfully. Examination of the pilot's seatbelt and the canopy latch did not reveal any malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Therefore, it is likely that the pilots did not latch the canopy properly before takeoff and that the pilot did not properly fasten his seatbelt, which allowed him to be pulled from the airplane due to the high G forces after the canopy opened in flight.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.