Winters Glasair SH-2 accident near Riverside, CA
On May 31, 2003, a Winters Glasair SH-2 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Riverside, CA. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- May 31, 2003
- Place
- Riverside, CA
- Aircraft
- Winters Glasair SH-2 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 33.952°N, 117.445°W
- NTSB ID
- 20030605X00791
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On May 31, 2003, at 1012 Pacific daylight time, an amateur-built experimental Winters Glasair SH-2 single-engine airplane, N73LV, collided with terrain following a loss of control after takeoff at Riverside Airport (RAL), Riverside, California. The airplane was owned and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot, the sole occupant, sustained fatal injuries; the airplane was destroyed. The local personal flight departed RAL at 1007, with a planned destination of Hemet-Ryan Airport (HMT), Hemet, California. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed and a special visual flight rules flight plan had been filed. Officers from the Riverside Police Department interviewed four witnesses to the accident. They reported seeing the airplane take off from runway 09, climb to about 200 to 300 feet (agl), make a sharp left turn, and nose-dive into the ground. In a telephone conversation, with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC), one of the other witnesses, a former police investigator and 3600-hour private pilot, recalled the engine sounding as though it were at full power, and that the airplane's climb performance appeared to be good. As the airplane approached the terminal (mid-runway), about 200 feet agl, it began to make a steep turn to the left. He thought that the bank was about 80 to 90-degrees. It headed straight down and the airplane's nose impacted the ground at a 90-degree angle. After the initial impact, the airplane bounced about 15 feet into the air and then came down impact
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during an abrupt, low altitude maneuver during the takeoff-initial climb, which resulted in a collision with terrain during the subsequent uncontrolled descent.
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Browse: California
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
