Zorn EAA Sport Bi-Plane accident near Mazon, IL
On May 29, 2004, a Zorn EAA Sport Bi-Plane (airplane) was involved in an accident near Mazon, IL. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- May 29, 2004
- Place
- Mazon, IL
- Aircraft
- Zorn EAA Sport Bi-Plane · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 41.426°N, 88.419°W
- NTSB ID
- 20040602X00715
NTSB summary
On May 29, 2004, at 0730 central daylight time, an unregistered Zorn EAA Sport Bi-Plane, collided with the terrain following a loss of control during initial climb after takeoff from a private airstrip in Mazon, Illinois. The pilot received fatal injuries and the airplane was substantially damaged. The 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight was operating in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. The flight originated just prior to the accident. A witness reported, "I saw the plane come over the trees and it waivered and nose dived into the ground." Another witness reported the airplane appeared to be "performing maneuvers in the air above the crash site." The pilot's wife reported the pilot purchased the airplane in the fall of 2003. She reported that her husband had just finished assembling the airplane and the accident occurred during the first flight. She stated her husband was having some oil problems and he was going to test fly the airplane. According to the Grundy County Sheriff's Department Report, the pilot towed the airplane to a farm that had a grass airstrip the night prior to the accident and that the pilot left his home at 0600 on the morning of the accident to work on the airplane. The pilot's wife told the sheriff's department that her husband was "going to taxi the plane and complete short take-offs and landings to test the plane and engine." The airplane came to rest in an open field. The nose of the airplane impacted the terrain and came to rest in a near vertical position. The fuselage and empennage folded inverted over the cockpit. Both lower w
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed while maneuvering which resulted in a stall. A factor associated with the accident was the pilot's unfamiliarity with the handling characteristics of the airplane.
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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.
