Date:	Saturday 21 August 2004
Time:	13:41 LT
Type:	Pegasus Quik
Owner/operator:	Trustee of the G-STYX Flying Group
Registration:	G-STYX
MSN:	7932
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Category:	Accident
Location:	Plough Lane, Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey, Kent -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Training
Departure airport:	Rochester Airfield, Kent (EGTO)
Destination airport:	Rochester Airport, Kent (EGTO)
Investigating agency:	AAIB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
The Pegasus Quik microlight, with an instructor and passenger on board, departed Rochester Airfield for a trial lesson. Thirty five minutes into the flight, as it was flying at 500 feet along the north coast of the Isle of Sheppey, it pitched up steeply to the near vertical and entered a series of tumbling manoeuvres. As the microlight tumbled the trike unit, containing the two occupants, separated from the wing and descended vertically to the ground.

Neither the pilot nor his passenger survived the impact. The initiation of the pitching moment and subsequent entry into the tumbling sequence was brought about by the failure of the right upright upper fitting, which caused full nose-up trim to be suddenly applied.

Some time previously the microlight’s uprights upper fittings had been modified to comply with Service Bulletin 116 requiring the fitting of additional rivets. The additional rivets were not only fitted incorrectly, and without reference to the Service Bulletin, but two of them did not match the specification of those rivets supplied by the manufacturer in the modification kit. Additionally, no duplicate independent inspection was carried out on the correct embodiment of the modification.

A contemporary BBC report (see link #3) named the two fatalities as "Instructor Terry Stewart, 50, from Orpington, and his passenger, Daniel Attubato, 35, from Maidstone".

Nature of damage to airframe: Per the AAIB report "aircraft destroyed". As a result, the registration G-STYX was cancelled by the CAA on 01-03-2005 as "destroyed". and the named registered owners "Addressee Status: Deceased"

1. AAIB: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422fd1c40f0b6134600098d/Pegasus_Quik__G-STYX.pdf
2. CAA: https://siteapps.caa.co.uk/g-info/rk=STYX
3. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/kent/3601462.stm
4. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/8353716.stm
5. http://www.kentonline.co.uk/sheerness/news/victims-of-microlight-tragedy-na-a14515/
6. http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent/news/manslaughter-charges-over-microl-a24224/
7. http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent/news/inspector-wont-face-trial-over--a35548/
8. [LINK NOT WORKING ANYMORE:http://www.kentnews.co.uk/news/final_decision_made_to_drop_microlight_crash_case_1_1039509]
9. https://www.pprune.org/private-flying/208990-aaib-investigation-leads-manslaughter-charges-update-prosecution-withdrawn.html
10. https://www.pprune.org/private-flying/198568-aaib-report-microlight-accident.html
11. Photo of crash wreckage: https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-accident-plane-1-107807850.html

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
05-Aug-2016 17:59	Dr.John Smith	Added