Shafer SONERAI-I accident near W.Hampton Beach, NY
On June 22, 1997, a Shafer SONERAI-I (airplane) was involved in an accident near W.Hampton Beach, NY. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- June 22, 1997
- Place
- W.Hampton Beach, NY
- Aircraft
- Shafer SONERAI-I · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 40.830°N, 72.651°W
- NTSB ID
- 20001208X08229
NTSB summary
On June 22, 1997, about 1600 eastern daylight time, two homebuilt Sonerai-I airplanes, N20CS and N77TY, were destroyed when they collided during an airshow at The Francis S. Gabreski Airport (FOK), Westhampton Beach, New York. The certificated commercial pilot of N20CS sustained serious injures. The certificated commercial pilot of N77TY was fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the scheduled air race which originated at FOK. No flight plan had been filed for the air race conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. An air show had been in progress at FOK, which included air races conducted by the Formula V Air Racing Association, Inc. Several races had been conducted during the day, and the last race of the day included four Sonerai-I airplanes. The airplanes had crossed the finish line and several witnesses observed the airplanes enter a left turn. The second place blue colored airplane was N77TY, followed by the third place yellow colored airplane, N20CS. In a written statement, the pilot of the first place airplane stated that the takeoff was normal, and during the first lap around the course he encountered light turbulence. He also stated that on subsequent laps the turbulence "...seemed worse, but was probably due to the increase in speed. At no time was the turbulence severe." He further stated that during the race, while passing other airplanes, he did not observe them "buffeting around abnormally." At the completion of the race he flew past pylon #1 and climbed normally at full power. The race announcer stated that the race had been scheduled for eight
Probable cause
failure of the number two pilot (N77TY) to follow race procedures, and failure of the number three pilot (N20CS) to turn and avoid the number two airplane, when it decelerated into the number three pilot's blind spot.
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Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
