Kitfox IV N161JB

Summary

On 24 September 2021 at about 18:30 local time, a Kitfox IV registered N161JB, operated by Gregory A. Jacobi, was involved in an accident near Ozark, Arkansas, United States. One person was 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

24 September 2021 at 18:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Ozark, Arkansas, United States

Nearest airport

Byrd's Backcountry Airstrip (51AR)

Coordinates

35.6785, -93.7286

Aircraft

Kitfox IV

Registration

N161JB

Category

Airplane

Year built

1993

Engines

1

Operator

Gregory A. Jacobi

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Air Race/Show

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Ozark → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN21LA454

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inability to maintain altitude after the airplane encountered a downdraft while he intentionally flew at a low-altitude during a practice for a short-takeoff-and-landing flight competition.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that he was conducting a practice flight for a short-takeoff-and-landings (STOL) competition. The intended flight profile was a timed course consisting of multiple takeoffs-and-landings on several turf runways to demonstrate the STOL capabilities of the airplane and the pilot flying. The pilot intentionally flew the airplane at a low altitude throughout the flight. The flight path was in a river valley with tall ridges on either side of the river and there was a known risk of encountering downdrafts while flying the course. While performing a turn toward one of the airstrips, and less than 100ft above the ground the pilot reported encountering a downdraft and descended rapidly. In response, the pilot increased the engine throttle from near idle to maximum power. The pilot reported that the engine “stumbled” briefly because of the rapidly increased throttle, so he leveled the airplane’s wings and lowered the airplane’s pitch to increase airspeed. As the airplane approached an open area for landing, the airplane’s left main landing gear struck a tree, and the airplane subsequently impacted the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and the right wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The weather conditions at the time of the accident included clear skies with light surface winds from the south.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.