Great Lakes 2T-1(MENASCO SPECIAL N818K

Summary

On 26 May 2024 at about 16:00 local time, a Great Lakes 2T-1(MENASCO SPECIAL registered N818K was involved in an accident near Salisbury, Maryland, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 were seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

26 May 2024 at 16:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Salisbury, Maryland, United States

Nearest airport

Bennett (1N5)

Coordinates

38.4182, -75.6173

Aircraft

Great Lakes 2T-1(MENASCO SPECIAL

Registration

N818K

Category

Airplane

Year built

1929

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA24LA229

2 people were seriously injured.

The pilot’s exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack, resulting in an aerodynamic stall and loss of control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot and pilot-rated passenger departed the runway in the vintage biplane for a local flight. The pilot and passenger each had limited recollections of the accident flight, but the passenger remembered that, during the flight, the airplane felt “slow and mushy.” A witness on the ground recorded a video of the airplane’s takeoff and initial turn to the right, and strong engine noise could be heard throughout the video. The witness described that, shortly after he stopped recording, the airplane completed an approximate 180° turn back toward the airport. He then saw the airplane descend out of sight behind trees before he heard a “thud” and saw a puff of dust. The airplane came to rest in a grassy open field and exhibited damaged signatures consistent with a relatively low-energy, left-wing- and nose-low impact attitude. A postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Given the findings of the postaccident examination, including the impact signatures observed on the wreckage as well as the passenger’s description that the airplane felt “slow and mushy,” it is most likely that the pilot exceeded the airplane’s critical angle of attack while maneuvering, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall, loss of control, and subsequent impact with terrain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.