Loss of Control in Flight · NTSB CEN11LA194
TAYLORCRAFT DCO-65 — Americus, IN
| Date | February 15, 2011 |
| Location | Americus, IN |
| Aircraft | TAYLORCRAFT DCO-65 |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Uncontrolled descent Collision with terr/obj (non-CFIT) |
| Pilot age | 22 |
| Pilot total time | 500 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | 30 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1, 1 serious |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained - C
- Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
What happened
Prior to the local flight, the pilot performed a preflight inspection and fueled the airplane with three gallons in each wing fuel tank. The passenger reported that the takeoff and flight were normal. During the return flight to the departure airport, the airplane stalled and descended into wooded terrain resulting in substantial damage. The airplane impacted several trees and came to rest in a nose down vertical attitude. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed the forward fuselage was crushed, the wings were bent and buckled, and the engine was partially separated. Flight control continuity was established to all flight control surfaces. There was no evidence of mechanical malfunction or failure with the engine or airframe.