ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 154661
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| Date: | Friday 29 March 2013 |
| Time: | 15:46 |
| Type: |  Zenair CH 601 XL Zodiac |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N999NA |
| MSN: | 6222 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 58 hours |
| Engine model: | Jabiru 3300 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Over Brainerd and Apison townships, Hamilton County, TN -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | Collegedale, TN |
| Collegedale, TN | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The pilot had recently purchased the experimental amateur-built airplane and was not familiar with it. The flight instructor reported that, before the pilot's first instructional flight in the airplane, they were unable to start the engine. The pilot unlatched and raised the canopy to call for assistance from ground personnel. As the ground person started to attach the battery charger to the engine, the pilot unbuckled his seatbelt to assist; however, the ground person told the pilot that he did not need to get out of the airplane. The pilot then hastily attempted to refasten his seatbelt, and the pilots lowered the canopy. The flight instructor stated that the canopy appeared to be flush with the fuselage and latched properly; however, about 9 minutes into the flight, the canopy opened, and the airplane entered a negative G dive, at which point, the pilot was pulled out of his seat and the airplane. The flight instructor remained in his seat with the seatbelt fastened and landed the airplane uneventfully. Examination of the pilot's seatbelt and the canopy latch did not reveal any malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Therefore, it is likely that the pilots did not latch the canopy properly before takeoff and that the pilot did not properly fasten his seatbelt, which allowed him to be pulled from the airplane due to the high G forces after the canopy opened in flight.
Probable Cause: The pilot's failure to ensure that his seatbelt was fastened and the pilots' failure to ensure that the canopy was latched properly, which resulted in the pilot's ejection from the cockpit following the opening of the canopy and the subsequent in-flight upset.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 30-Mar-2013 02:10 | dfix1 | Added |
| 30-Mar-2013 17:07 | Geno | Updated [Registration, Cn, Location, Source, Narrative] |
| 30-Mar-2013 19:33 | harro | Updated [Aircraft type] |
| 31-Mar-2013 01:07 | RyanVHS | Updated [Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
| 07-Apr-2013 05:10 | Geno | Updated [Time, Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:28 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 28-Nov-2017 14:15 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
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