Accident Vernon L. Cox COX-HAWK N7VC,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 133955
 
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Date:Saturday 20 April 1996
Time:11:05 LT
Type:Vernon L. Cox COX-HAWK
Owner/operator:Vernon L. Cox
Registration: N7VC
MSN: A001
Year of manufacture:1995
Total airframe hrs:170 hours
Engine model:Lycoming IO-540
Fatalities:Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Category:Accident
Location:Mebane, NC -   United States of America
Phase: En route
Nature:Private
Departure airport:Apex, NC (NC81)
Destination airport:Martinsville, VA (MTV
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
During cruise flight the pilot encountered adverse weather ahead. He initiated a 180-degree turn but inadvertently entered clouds. The pilot became spatially disoriented and the airplane began descending with the airspeed increasing beyond Vne. The aileron system then failed and 2 of the 6 flying wires for the left wing also failed. The flight descended below the base of the clouds about 1,300 feet above ground level and the pilot made a forced landing into a field. After touchdown in a rough field the airplane cartwheeled and came to rest upright. The pilot did not obtain a weather briefing before takeoff, and the airplane was not equipped with instruments for controlling the airplane without reference to terrain.

Probable Cause: The pilot's inadvertent flight into instrument meteorological conditions in an airplane not equipped with appropriate instrumentation which led to the pilot's inability to maintain control and spatial disorientation. In addition, during an attemped recovery from the loss of control, the airplane exceeded Vne which resulted in failure of the aileron flight control system and flying wires. Contributing to the accident was the failure of the pilot to obtain a preflight weather briefing and the unsuitable terrain encountered during the forced landing.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: MIA96LA123
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 5 months
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB MIA96LA123

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
21-Dec-2016 19:26 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
09-Apr-2024 07:19 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Phase, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Plane category, Category, Accident report]

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