Stall / Spin · NTSB ERA16LA068
MCCORKLE ROBERT B RANS S-12 AIRAILE — Benton, TN
| Date | December 12, 2015 |
| Location | Benton, TN |
| Aircraft | MCCORKLE ROBERT B RANS S-12 AIRAILE (amateur-built) |
| Purpose of flight | Personal |
| Conditions | Day · Visual Meteorological Cond |
| Phase / occurrence | Initial climb Aerodynamic stall/spin |
| Pilot age | 61 |
| Pilot total time | Unknown |
| Time in type | Unknown |
| 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-Angle of attack-Capability exceeded - C
What happened
The sport pilot of the experimental, amateur-built airplane was the last to takeoff in a group of three airplanes. After takeoff, the airplane entered a steep climb, banked sharply left, and then descended rapidly in a manner consistent with an aerodynamic stall and spin. Examination of the airplane did not reveal evidence of any preexisting mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that, during the initial climb, the pilot failed to maintain control of the airplane, which resulted in the exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack and an aerodynamic stall/spin. Although the pilot had coronary artery disease, and he was taking clozapine, a drug that can cause seizures or cardiac arrest, it could not be determined whether the pilot was impaired or incapacitated at the time of the accident.