Poulin L/Cullen D Lancair Legacy — Murrieta, CA, 2008

Poulin L/Cullen D Lancair Legacy — Murrieta, CA

2 fatal Low altitude

Date	May 30, 2008
Location	Murrieta, CA
Aircraft	Poulin L/Cullen D Lancair Legacy (amateur-built)
Purpose of flight	Personal
Conditions	Day · Visual Meteorological Cond
Phase / occurrence	Maneuvering-low-alt flying Loss of control in flight
Pilot age	76
Pilot total time	600 hrs · Building experience
Time in type	Unknown
Fatalities	2

Probable cause

The pilot's inadequate preflight planning, which resulted in the loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion, and the pilot's failure to maintain flying speed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin and the subsequent collision with terrain.

NTSB findings

Personnel issues-Task performance-Planning/preparation-Fuel planning-Pilot
Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained

What happened

The pilot had made multiple touch-and-go landings prior to the accident. Witnesses observed the airplane heading in a southerly direction toward the runway of intended landing before making a hard right turn and subsequently nosing into the ground. One witness said he heard a "loud engine rev" before the engine " died out." A post accident examination of the airplane revealed that the propeller was not under power when it impacted terrain. It was also revealed that the interior of the wings, the wreckage, the vegetation, and the ground did not indicate any signs of a fuel odor or a fuel spill. An examination of the aircraft and engine failed to reveal any preimpact anomalies, which would have precluded normal operation. An FAA inspector reported it appeared that the airplane had run out of fuel and stalled on approach, causing it to enter a spin prior to impacting terrain in a near vertical attitude.

An editorial "what led to it / how to avoid it" analysis for this accident is generated separately and will appear here.