Takeoff & Initial Climb · NTSB ERA09LA454
PONGRACZ JOHN M NIEUPORT 1 — Brasstown, NC
| Date | August 10, 2009 |
| Location | Brasstown, NC |
| Aircraft | PONGRACZ JOHN M NIEUPORT 1 (amateur-built) |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Initial climb Loss of control in flight |
| Pilot age | 63 |
| Pilot total time | 500 hrs · Building experience |
| Time in type | 1 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Incorrect action performance-Pilot - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained - C
What happened
The accident flight was the initial flight of the experimental, amateur-built airplane. Witnesses observed the airplane departing south toward rising terrain. The normal departure procedure for that private grass strip was to depart toward the north, where the terrain descended. The airplane was observed in a normal takeoff roll before becoming airborne and, about 300 feet above the ground, pitching up before coming straight down. The airplane impacted the ground nose first, coming to rest on its back side in a pasture adjacent to the right side of the grass strip. A postcrash fire ensued. The airplane’s engine was heard at full power until impact. The responding Federal Aviation Administration inspector established flight control continuity to all the flight controls. The engine exam did not reveal any discrepancy that would have prevented the engine from producing power.