Lancair Company LC 40 550FG accident near Ranger, TX
On August 17, 2014, a Lancair Company LC 40 550FG (airplane) was involved in an accident near Ranger, TX. 3 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- August 17, 2014
- Place
- Ranger, TX
- Aircraft
- Lancair Company LC 40 550FG · Airplane
- Injuries
- 3 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 32.444°N, 98.591°W
- NTSB ID
- 20140817X30234
Official records · CEN14FA437
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Air Traffic Control - Track Data: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn August 16, 2014, at 2324 central daylight time, a Lancair LC40-550FG, N6500Z, impacted terrain after departing Cook Canyon Ranch Airport (TA25), near Ranger, Texas. The pilot and two passengers were fatally injured and the airplane was destroyed. The airplane was registered to and operated by River Bend Energy, LLC under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Dark night visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which departed without a flight plan. The flight was originating at the time of the accident. Two witnesses at TA25 saw the airplane depart from Runway 35, which was lighted at a "high" setting by airport personnel. The airplane began a right turn towards the east. The turn increased at a slow rate to a "knife edge" bank angle and then the witnesses noticed the airplane's navigation lights become vertically aligned. The airplane subsequently descended out of their sight. PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe pilot, age 63, held a private pilot certificate with airplane single-engine land and instrument ratings. On July 7, 2014, the pilot was issued a Class 3 medical certificate, which required corrective lenses to be worn. A review of the pilot's logbook revealed that he accumulated 451.2 hours of total flight time, with 23.8 hours flown at night and 3.1 hours flown in actual instrument conditions. The pilot accomplished a bi-annual flight review on July 25, 2014. During this two-hour review flight, the pilot accomplished four instrument approaches, holding procedures, and three landings, all during dayt
Probable cause
The pilot's loss of airplane control shortly after takeoff as a result of spatial disorientation due to dark night conditions, the pilot's low overall night and instrument flight time, and his lack of recent night flights.
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Browse: Texas · Lancair 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.
