Bearhawk LSA accident near Kalispell, MT
On April 30, 2022, a Bearhawk LSA (airplane) was involved in an accident near Kalispell, MT. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- April 30, 2022
- Place
- Kalispell, MT
- Aircraft
- Bearhawk LSA · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 48.286°N, 114.403°W
- NTSB ID
- 20220430105021
Official records · WPR22FA169
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn April 30, 2022, about 0804 mountain daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Bearhawk LSA, N1908A, sustained substantial damaged when it was involved in an accident near Kalispell, Montana. The pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot planned to fly to Eureka Airport (88M) for breakfast with a group of friends flying in two other airplanes. They departed Kalispell City Airport (S27) about 0759. The accident airplane was the last in trail. The other pilots in the group stated that the takeoff was uneventful, with clear skies, good visibility, and no significant weather. They did not see the accident airplane after takeoff but were tracking it on their ADS-B receivers until a few minutes later when the airplane disappeared. ADS-B data indicated that after departing from runway 31, the accident airplane climbed on the runway heading for about 4 minutes at a groundspeed of about 88 knots. The airplane then leveled off at a barometric (pressure) altitude of 4,900 ft (about 1,850 ft agl) and for the next 60 seconds accelerated to a ground speed of about 115 knots, after which the data ended. Closer examination of the altitude data, which had a resolution of 100 ft, indicated that for the final 3.5 seconds of flight, and while maintaining the same track, the airplane descended to 4,800 ft, then climbed to 5,100 ft before descending again to 5,000 ft as the data ended (figure 1). Figure 1 –Flight track and debris field About that time, a witnesses heard an
Probable cause
An excessive pitch control input for undetermined reasons while the airplane was operating above maneuvering speed, which led to a structural failure of the right wing during cruise flight. Contributing to the accident was the poor construction quality of the airplane and the inadvertent omission by the pilot/builder of a series of structural airframe components.
More accidents in MT
- Pilatus PC-12/45, Mar 22, 2009
- Beech D18S, Jul 5, 1987
- Cessna 550, Dec 18, 1992
- Beech V35B, Jun 24, 1982
- Cessna 182C, May 12, 2007
Browse: Montana
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
