Stallings VariEze accident near Loveland, CO
On August 20, 2006, a Stallings VariEze (airplane) was involved in an accident near Loveland, CO. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- August 20, 2006
- Place
- Loveland, CO
- Aircraft
- Stallings VariEze · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 40.469°N, 105.126°W
- NTSB ID
- 20060905X01289
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On August 19, 2006, at 1921 mountain daylight time, a Stallings VariEze, N23HS, registered to the pilot, was destroyed when it struck terrain while maneuvering approximately 2 miles north of Loveland, Colorado. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot and pilot-rated passenger were fatally injured. The local flight originated at Longmont Airport, Longmont, Colorado, at 1856. According to a friend, the pilots told him they were going to practice aerobatics, specifically, "loops and rolls." One Larimer County sheriff's detective, who was working in his yard about 2 miles south of the accident site, said he saw the airplane fly over at low altitude. According to the sheriff's office, a witness driving along Taft Hill Road heard a "pop" and saw the airplane "spiraling in." Another witness, also driving along Taft Hill Road, said he saw the airplane making lateral "S" maneuvers before diving to the ground. Both witnesses said the airplane was at low altitude. The accident occurred at dusk on the west side of Larimer Country Road (CR) 19 (Taft Hill Road or Wilson Avenue), between CR 57 and Trilby Road, at geographical coordinates 40 degrees, 28.064' North latitude, and 105 degrees, 06.942' West longitude. The GPS (Global Positioning System) altitude was 5,095 feet msl (above mean sea level), +/-18 feet. The first 9-1-1 call was received by the Larimer County Sheriff's Office at 1923. PERSONNEL INFORMATION The pilot,
Probable cause
the pilot's intentional aerobatics performed at low altitude, and his failure to maintain clearance from terrain. A contributing factor was the pilot's poor judgment.
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Browse: Colorado
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
