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| Date: | Wednesday 22 May 2002 |
| Time: | 14:42 |
| Type: |  Grob G120A |
| Owner/operator: | Airline Training Center Arizona Inc |
| Registration: | N866AF |
| MSN: | 85006 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 6 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming AEIO-540-D4D5 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Mobile, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Test |
| Departure airport: | Phoenix Goodyear Airport, AZ (GYR/KGYR) |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On May 22, 2002, about 1442 mountain standard time, a Grob G120A, N866AF, registered to Airline Training Center Arizona, Inc., operating as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 maintenance test flight, crashed while maneuvering in the vicinity of Mobile, Arizona. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The aircraft was destroyed, and the airline transport rated flight instructor, the sole occupant, sustained fatal injuries. The flight departed Phoenix-Goodyear Municipal Airport, Goodyear, Arizona, at 1404.
During the airplane's first flight after assembly, an eyewitness on the ground stated he observed it cross his field of vision, right to left, at a very low altitude and at very high rate of speed. The attitude of the airplane went progressively from 90 degrees of bank to wings level and nose down until it collided with the terrain in a flat attitude. He saw a perceptible nose rising, but it was too late to avoid impact with the desert floor. No discrepancies could be found with the airframe or engine, post crash.
Probable Cause: The failure of the pilot to maintain altitude clearance with the terrain.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20020529X00748&key=1
Location
Images:
Photos: NTSB
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 28-Oct-2008 00:45 | ASN archive | Added |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:24 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency, ] |
| 09-Dec-2017 16:41 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 29-Nov-2024 14:21 | Captain Adam | Updated [Operator, Departure airport, Narrative, Photo, ] |
| 29-Nov-2024 14:22 | Captain Adam | Updated [Photo, ] |
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