Stall / Spin · NTSB ERA15LA156
KOLB TWINSTAR — Reynolds, GA
| Date | March 15, 2015 |
| Location | Reynolds, GA |
| Aircraft | KOLB TWINSTAR |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Maneuvering-low-alt flying Aerodynamic stall/spin |
| Pilot age | 52 |
| Pilot total time | 24 hrs · Student / very low time |
| Time in type | 1 hrs |
| Fatalities | 1 |
Probable cause
NTSB findings
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Angle of attack-Capability exceeded - C
- Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained - C
- Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of equip/system-Pilot - C
What happened
The student pilot was flying at a low altitude over a relative's residence. The airplane circled over the house twice before overflying a wooded area at the neighboring residence and, according to a witness, appeared to "hover" as it flew over the trees. Shortly thereafter, the airplane suddenly pitched nose-down and impacted terrain. Witness observations were consistent with the airplane flying at a very low groundspeed, and likely a very low airspeed. The nose-down impact angle, and absence of ground scars or debris path were consistent with a stall at the time of impact. Because the airplane was operating at low altitude, the airplane's altitude was insufficient to allow the student pilot to recover the airplane from the stall. Although oil was found on the engine case and empennage, no pre-impact mechanical malfunctions or failures were found with the engine or airplane that would have precluded normal operation.