A low-altitude maneuver prior to a fatal crash east of Didsbury, Alta., in July caused an ultralight aircraft to go into a spin. transportation safety board Canada (TSB).
Just before 10 a.m. on July 13, 2022, a privately registered Zlin Savage Cub took off from a private airstrip seven nautical miles east of Didsbury for a “local recreational flight” with two people on board: a 69-year-old Local pilot and a 65 year old male passenger from New Zealand.
TSB investigators tracked the flight’s route via portable GPS and obtained smartphone video taken inside the aircraft in the final minutes of flight.
The video shows an “intentional” power-on stall at 1,100 feet above the ground, a successful recovery, and another power-on stall at 900 feet above the ground.
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According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots AssociationA power-on stall can occur during a loss of engine power during takeoff, but can also be practiced at less than full power.
“At the point of stall when the nose dropped, the left wing also dropped and the aircraft entered a left spin,” the TSB report said.
The TSB said the pilot pulled the control stick back and to the right.
The TSB report read, “The attitude of the aircraft near the end of the spinning maneuver was relatively flat compared to the typical nose-down attitude for light aircraft in a spin.”
The plane hit the ground at around 10:15 am, just a kilometer away from the airstrip.
“The aircraft struck the ground in a shallow, nose-down attitude with slight-to-no forward speed,” the TSB said, noting the landing gear was pushed into and around the cabin. was given. and the wing struts failed to brace the wings from the collision.
The pilot’s family started the search at around 3.30 pm and the wreckage of the aircraft was found an hour later. First reached the spot at 5:15 pm
Both men were pronounced dead at the scene.
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The TSB reminds pilots that stalls must be conducted at an altitude that allows a safe recovery.
“While conducting a stall, there is always a possibility that the aircraft will enter an unintentional spin, so pilots should be familiar with the spin recovery techniques for their aircraft model,” the TSB said.
“Also, pilots should not stall when there are passengers.”
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