Mccorkle Robert B RANS S-12 AIRAILE accident near Benton, TN
On December 12, 2015, a Mccorkle Robert B RANS S-12 AIRAILE (airplane) was involved in an accident near Benton, TN. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- December 12, 2015
- Place
- Benton, TN
- Aircraft
- Mccorkle Robert B RANS S-12 AIRAILE · Airplane
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 35.224°N, 84.585°W
- NTSB ID
- 20151214X65358
Official records · ERA16LA068
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
On December 12, 2015, about 1440 eastern standard time, an experimental, amateur-built RANS S-12 Airaile airplane, N6202N, was substantially damaged when it impacted the ground shortly after takeoff from Chilhowee Gilderport (92A), Benton, Tennessee. The sport pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the flight to a private airstrip in Athens, Tennessee.According to witnesses, the airplane was the third in a group of three to take off from runway 21 at 92A. Witnesses noted that, after the takeoff, the airplane made a "rapid" or "steep" climb at the top of which it began a left turn. One witness noted that the airplane then entered a "steep wingover-like 180° turn reversing to the north." The airplane was then "in a low energy state," about 150 ft above ground level (agl) at a high rate of descent with "the left wing [then] lowering in what can only be described as a 1/2- to 3/4-turn spin, impacting the ground with the left wing and nose." Another witness noted that the airplane "appeared to stall, hovered for a split second and twisted in a nose dive into [a] sod field." A third witness stated that the airplane was in a left bank of about 70° to 80° and subsequently "descended rapidly then 'nosed over' and impacted the ground in a near vertical attitude." A fourth witness, who was inside at the time, stated, "I heard the crash; the sound of the engine was loud a
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain airplane control during the initial climb, which resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and an aerodynamic stall/spin.
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Browse: Tennessee
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
