Accident Hawker Siddeley TAV-8A Harrier 159381,
ASN logo
ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 77357
 
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information. If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.

Date:Thursday 28 April 1983
Time:
Type:Silhouette image of generic HAR model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different    
Hawker Siddeley TAV-8A Harrier
Owner/operator:VMAT-203 / USMC
Registration: 159381
MSN: 212020
Fatalities:Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Location:MCAS Cherry Point, Havelock, North Carolina -   United States of America
Phase: Take off
Nature:Military
Departure airport:MCAS Cherry Point (KNT/KNKT)
Destination airport:
Confidence Rating: Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources
Narrative:
CAPT. PAUL L. SPARGO JR.
Died: April 27, 1983

A jammed control stick downed Spargo's two-seat training plane. The TAV-8A had crashed previously and been rebuilt. Before Spargo's crash, a pilot had reported a jammed control stick, but mechanics couldn't find a cause and recertified it for flight.

The stick stuck again on Spargo during vertical takeoff from Cherry Point. Spargo's student, Dwight Motz, ejected safely but Spargo was seconds too late. He hit the ground, breaking his neck. The investigation found that a spare part, a metal hose adapter, had been left beneath the cockpit floorboard and had caused the stick to jam.

Sources:

http://web.archive.org/web/20121118000509/http://www.scramble.nl:80/sb.htm
http://www.joebaugher.com/navy_serials/thirdseries20.html
http://www.pulitzer.org/archives/6725

Revision history:

Date/timeContributorUpdates
07-Sep-2010 14:30 ASN Archive
18-Aug-2011 22:21 Dr. John Smith Updated [Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Country, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative]
27-Aug-2011 19:02 Dr. John Smith Updated [Total occupants, Source]

Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description

The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:

CONNECT WITH US: FSF on social media FSF Facebook FSF Twitter FSF Youtube FSF LinkedIn FSF Instagram

©2024 Flight Safety Foundation

1920 Ballenger Av, 4th Fl.
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
www.FlightSafety.org