Accident Aero Vodochody L-39C Albatros N901NL,
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ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 46010
 
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Date:Saturday 10 February 2001
Time:12:00
Type:Silhouette image of generic L39 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Aero Vodochody L-39C Albatros
Owner/operator:Northern Lights Aerobatics USA Inc.
Registration: N901NL
MSN: 031804
Total airframe hrs:899 hours
Fatalities:Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Category:Accident
Location:Pecan Island, Louisiana -   United States of America
Phase: Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature:Private
Departure airport:Lafayette, LA (LFT)
Destination airport:
Investigating agency: NTSB
Confidence Rating: Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Narrative:
The tandem seat experimental jet aircraft impacted terrain while performing low level aerobatics. Witnesses observed the airplane flying inverted over the pilot's hunting camp just prior to ground impact. No anomalies were found with the airframe or engine during examination of the wreckage. Partial disassembly of the engine revealed that it was operating at the time of the accident. According to radar records and a statement provided by an FAA inspector, the pilot had flown "vigorous" aerobatic flight sequences in a different airplane several hours prior to the accident flight. The two types of aircraft flown on the day of the accident had dissimilar flight envelopes, configurations, sight pictures, and relative speeds. An FAA inspector, who had given the pilot aerobatic instruction in the past, stated that the pilot could have been impaired during the accident flight due to "acute fatigue" from the aerobatic flights he flew earlier on the day of the accident.



Probable Cause: the pilot's failure to maintain altitude/clearance from terrain while performing low level aerobatics. A factor was fatigue.

Accident investigation:
cover
  
Investigating agency: NTSB
Report number: FTW01FA063
Status: Investigation completed
Duration:
Download report: Final report

Sources:

NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20010220X00467&key=1
FAA register: 2. http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=901NL

Location

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
28-Oct-2008 00:45 ASN archive Added
02-Dec-2014 21:03 Dr. John Smith Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
21-Dec-2016 19:24 ASN Update Bot Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency]
10-Dec-2017 10:33 ASN Update Bot Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
25-Feb-2020 21:30 Xindel XL Updated [Aircraft type, Source, Operator]
01-Aug-2022 08:00 C4Net Updated [Category]

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