ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 59088
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| Date: | Sunday 5 April 2009 |
| Time: | 13:25 |
| Type: |  Curtiss P-40N Warhawk |
| Owner/operator: | Leestown Aviation Warhawk Inc |
| Registration: | N740RB |
| MSN: | 44-7368 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 1469 hours |
| Engine model: | Allison V 1710 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | off Smith Point Beach, near Mastic Beach, NY -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Shirley, NY (HWV) |
| Shirley, NY (HWV) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The pilot's son said that he and his father were an airshow "team," that the purpose of the flight was to practice aerobatics in their World War Two-era fighter, and that he would act as a "safety guide" from the beach with a handheld radio. The pilot's son stated that all communications with the accident airplane were "normal." The airplane entered a "half Cuban eight" maneuver at an estimated 250 to 260 mph and when the airplane was "in the middle of the Cuban eight it went into a spin." The pilot's son estimated that the airplane had slowed to 100 to 120 mph--which was, according to him, "too slow"--when the airplane entered the spin and lacked the altitude to recover before crashing into the sea. A former Army fighter pilot witness described a similar sequence of events and stated that he thought the pilot was attempting an "Immelman" turn and added, "I knew he was in trouble when he didn't complete the Immelman turn and went off on one wing. The plane made 4 to 5 revolutions and augured into the ocean." The witness stated that no parts departed the airplane at anytime during the flight or accident sequence. A third and fourth witness provided similar accounts. The wreckage was not recovered from the ocean.
Probable Cause: The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed while performing aerobatics at low altitude.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 05-Apr-2009 21:15 | Digitalis | Added |
| 05-Apr-2009 23:25 | slowkid | Updated |
| 06-Apr-2009 00:01 | slowkid | Updated |
| 06-Apr-2009 06:03 | Anon. | Updated |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:25 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 01-Dec-2017 18:52 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Cn, Operator, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
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