Stall / Spin · NTSB CEN14FA325
DOYLE JAMES E SKYBOLT — Midlothian, TX
| Date | June 28, 2014 |
| Location | Midlothian, TX |
| Aircraft | DOYLE JAMES E SKYBOLT (amateur-built) |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Maneuvering-aerobatics Aerodynamic stall/spin |
| Pilot age | 48 |
| Pilot total time | 918 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | 250 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-(general)-Not attained/maintained - C
What happened
According to an aerobatic judge who was critiquing the flight, the pilot was performing aerobatic maneuvers within the designated aerobatic box for the airport. The pilot had completed the planned maneuvers then asked the judge if he would watch him perform another maneuver—a "shoulder roll." After leveling off about 2,000 feet above ground level, the pilot performed and completed the maneuver; subsequently the airplane entered a knife-edge attitude followed by a clockwise inverted spin. Multiple witnesses observed the airplane in a flat spin and one witness estimated the airplane made 3 to 4 revolutions in the spin before it hit the ground. The airplane came to rest inverted west of the runway. All components were located at the impact site. An examination of the airframe, engine, and related systems revealed no anomalies. The pilot/owner had previously completed various modifications to the airplane; investigators were not able to determine if the changes made to the airplane would have affected the airplane's ability to recover from a spin or inverted spin.