North American T6 accident near Santa Rosa Beach, FL
On March 6, 2010, a North American T6 (airplane) was involved in an accident near Santa Rosa Beach, FL. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- March 6, 2010
- Place
- Santa Rosa Beach, FL
- Aircraft
- North American T6 · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 30.345°N, 86.280°W
- NTSB ID
- 20100306X54215
Official records · ERA10FA163
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On March 6, 2010, at 1236 central standard time, a North American SNJ-6, N47LF, was destroyed when it impacted the Gulf of Mexico about 1 mile south of Topsail Hill Reserve State Park, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. The certificated commercial pilot and the passenger were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The airplane, part of a five-airplane formation, was not operating on a flight plan. The personal flight was being conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. According to the formation lead pilot, all of the pilots of the five-airplane formation met about 1130 for a formation briefing. The flight took off about 1200, and flew westbound, over water along the east-west beach for about 4 miles, with cross unders and echelons practiced. A breakup and rejoin was accomplished, and the formation proceeded eastbound. After later turning to the south, away from the beach, another breakup was accomplished with subsequent maneuvering resulting in an in-trail formation headed eastbound. The accident airplane was number 5 in trail. In interviews, the pilots indicated that some were performing aileron rolls while in trail. None were performing additional acrobatics such as loops or barrel rolls from that low of an altitude, which the formation lead pilot indicated was about 500 feet above the water. A trail pilot reported that the separation between the airplanes was about 2,000 yards. A video card containing a video clip of the accident was provided via local authorities. The video, which was taken from the beach,
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during a low altitude,over water aerobatic maneuver, which resulted in an aggravated stall/spin. Contributing to the accident were the pilot's loss of situational awareness and his decision to perform aerobatics at a low altitude.
More accidents in FL
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Browse: Florida · North American aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
