Edwards Douglas L SKY RANGER accident near Wautoma, WI
On August 1, 2011, an Edwards Douglas L SKY RANGER (airplane) was involved in an accident near Wautoma, WI. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- August 1, 2011
- Place
- Wautoma, WI
- Aircraft
- Edwards Douglas L SKY RANGER · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 44.046°N, 89.305°W
- NTSB ID
- 20110801X20718
Official records · CEN11FA531
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
On August 1, 2011, about 0820 central daylight time, an Edwards Sky Ranger, experimental light sport airplane, N7501Y, owned and operated by a sport pilot, impacted terrain following a loss of control during initial climb after takeoff from the Wautoma Metropolitan Airport (Y50), Wautoma, Wisconsin. The sport pilot was seriously injured and the sole passenger sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a flight plan had not been filed for the cross-country flight destined for a private airstrip near Maquoketa, Iowa. The pilot stated that he took off heading east from the grass runway at Y50 and climbed to about 200 feet over the east end of the runway. He said he circled around to do an over fly of the airport. He said that after he “straightened out there was no control over the horizontal tail.” He pulled back on the control stick several times “with no result.” The airplane then “dove straight down” impacting the ground 100 feet from the end of the runway. An eyewitness to the accident reported that he had owned three Sky Rangers at different times, had logged hundreds of hours instructing in them, and had taught the accident pilot to fly 15 to 16 years ago. According to the eyewitness, following a preflight which included topping off the 20 gallon fuel tank and checking the oil, the pilot began his takeoff roll along runway 08. After liftoff, the pilot leveled the airplane just above the runway and bui
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to maintain proper airspeed and attitude control of the airplane in the turn, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.
More accidents in WI
- Douglas DC-9-14, Sep 6, 1985
- Beech 200, Nov 16, 1987
- Piper PA-28-140, Feb 3, 1991
- Piper PA-32R-300, Aug 19, 1990
- Cessna 421C, Jul 1, 2017
Browse: Wisconsin
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
