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| Date: | Wednesday 21 April 2010 |
| Time: | 09:36 |
| Type: | Airborne Edge XT-912-L |
| Owner/operator: | Tedd's Flying Adventures |
| Registration: | N34TH |
| MSN: | XT-912-0335 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 100 hours |
| Engine model: | Rotax 912 UL |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | Kailua Kona, HI (KOA) |
| Kailua Kona, HI (KOA) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The flight was an introductory flight lesson in a weight-shift-controlled aircraft. Witnesses reported that they observed the aircraft maneuver over the ocean and approach a 450-foot cliff at a 45-degree angle. As the aircraft came close to the cliff, it banked steeply away and rolled inverted. Witnesses reported hearing a loud “pop” and the wings folded around the fuselage (pod). The aircraft descended in a spiraling corkscrew-like manner before impacting the water. The aircraft immediately sank and was never recovered. The pilot likely exceeded the manufacturer’s operating limitations for the aircraft, which specifies a maximum pitch limit of 45 degrees and a maximum bank angle of 60 degrees. Positive flight load factors are limited to 4G and negative loads are prohibited; flight loads between positive 1G and 0G should be avoided. The pilot’s operating handbook cautioned that negative G maneuvers can never be conducted safely and stated that these maneuvers put the aircraft outside of the pilot’s control.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s intentional in-flight maneuvers that exceeded the structural limits of the aircraft, which resulted in structural failure of the wings.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 21-Apr-2010 21:00 | Geno | Added |
| 22-Apr-2010 01:55 | slowkid | Updated [Aircraft type, Operator, Source, ] |
| 22-Apr-2010 02:13 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Operator, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, ] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:25 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency, ] |
| 26-Nov-2017 16:34 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, Plane category, ] |
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