ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 235852
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| Date: | Saturday 9 May 2020 |
| Time: | 06:45 LT |
| Type: | Titan Tornado S |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N318WH |
| MSN: | S12XXXC0HK0546 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2015 |
| Engine model: | Rotax 912 ULS |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | near Haskell Airport (2K9), Haskell, OK -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Test |
| Departure airport: | Haskell, OK (2K9) |
| Haskell, OK (2K9) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The student pilot departed on a flight in a kit-built airplane to test the winglets he had recently installed on the airplane's stabilator, which were intended to eliminate the airplane's uncommanded yaw. The flight was the airplane's first winglet test flight away from the airport traffic pattern and at a higher altitude. The student stated that during the flight, he decreased the pitch attitude to level off at 2,000 ft above ground level and the airplane suddenly vibrated aggressively and it "felt like the tail was thumping." He decreased the engine power, but the thumping and vibrating continued, so the pilot pitched the airplane down for an off-field emergency landing. Before he was able to land, the airplane rolled inverted and descended into the trees, resulting in the separation of the right wing.
Postaccident examination revealed that the stabilator control horn had fractured due to overstress and separated from the push-pull tube. According to an airplane kit manufacturer engineer, winglets added to the stabilator produce flutter. Based on the evidence, it is likely that the winglets led the stabilator to flutter, which overstressed the stabilator control horn and resulted in the control horn's failure.
Probable Cause: The student pilot/builder's addition of winglets to the stabilator, which resulted in flutter and overstress failure of the stabilator control horn.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB CEN20LA173
FAA register: https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=N318WH
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 10-May-2020 01:38 | Geno | Added |
| 11-May-2020 09:58 | The2ndBaron | Updated [Operator, Nature, Source] |
| 11-May-2020 13:30 | RobertMB | Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Source, Narrative] |
| 13-May-2020 10:17 | Captain Adam | Updated [Narrative] |
| 08-Jul-2022 08:15 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Category, Accident report] |
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