Christen PITTS S-2B N877UP

Summary

On 27 June 2015 at about 18:53 local time, a Christen PITTS S-2B registered N877UP was involved in an accident near Cameron, Missouri, 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

27 June 2015 at 18:53

Classification

Accident

Location

Cameron, Missouri, United States

Nearest airport

Cameron Memorial Airport (EZZ)

Coordinates

39.7267, -94.2792

Aircraft

Christen PITTS S-2B

Registration

N877UP

Category

Airplane

Year built

1985

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Air Race/Show

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cameron → Cameron

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN15FA282

1 person died.

The pilot’s failure to maintain airplane control during a low-level aerobatic flight maneuver.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was performing a series of aerobatic flight maneuvers at a low altitude during an airshow. Another airshow pilot, who was familiar with the accident pilot's airshow routine, reported that the accident pilot intended to do a 45-degree knife-edge climb, perform a "Lomcevak" maneuver, and then continue the knife-edge climb. Video recordings taken by persons on the ground showed the airplane in a knife-edge climb. The pilot then entered the Lomcevak maneuver by performing a climbing snap-roll to the left. The airplane pitched nose-down and tumbled two times to the left while descending. Rather than returning to the knife-edge climb, the airplane instead entered a left spin and completed about two and a half revolutions before it impacted the terrain. The video recordings indicated that the engine was operating throughout the flight to ground impact. A postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. A review of medical, pathological, and toxicological information revealed no evidence of any medical condition or substance that would have contributed to the pilot's loss of control during performance of aerobatic maneuvers.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.