Fatal crash of a Cessna 140 (N76075) during the 2022 Wayne County Mayday STOL Drag Races Event.
Vložit
- čas přidán 29. 10. 2023
- The accident pilot had planned to participate in an aviation event that involved a form of air racing called short takeoff and landing drag racing (STOL Drag). On the day of the accident, in the afternoon, the aviation event was supposed to begin with STOL Drag qualification racing; however, the air racing was postponed to the following day due to gusting wind conditions that were oriented in an unfavorable direction relative to the orientation of the racecourse.
After the postponement decision was made, several of the competing pilots expressed a desire to perform traditional STOL (without any drag racing component) on a grass runway where a more favorable, but gusty, headwind prevailed. A safety briefing was held with representatives of the event organizer, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors who were on site to supervise the STOL Drag event, and pilots who planned to fly in the traditional STOL. A representative of the STOL Drag event organizer informed the pilots that the flying was optional, and it was not a part of the formal air race competition. To limit traffic pattern congestion, multiple groups of 5 airplanes were organized.
According to witnesses and video/photographic evidence, the accident airplane was the last airplane within a group of 5, and all 5 airplanes had each performed two landings without incident. During the third approach, while the accident airplane was on final approach following a slower airplane ahead also on final approach, the accident airplane descended and appeared to be lower than the airplane ahead of it. Subsequently, the accident airplane's pitch attitude increased, it rolled to the right, completed a 3/4-turn right spin, and impacted terrain in a near-vertical attitude. Postaccident examination of the airframe and engine found no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
The evidence further showed that the accident pilot turned onto final approach early and, as a result, may have been altering his approach path and speed to maintain spacing behind the slower airplane ahead. If the pilot observed his airspeed decaying, given the lack of spacing ahead, adding engine power and/or increasing airspeed would only exacerbate the already close spacing with the airplane ahead. In this case, the only alternative would have been for the pilot to execute a go-around. Additionally, review of high-resolution photographs showed no evidence that the airplane's flaps had been extended on final approach, despite having used flaps for the prior landings. Data from the airplane's operations manual showed that extending the flaps would result in the airplane's stall speed being about 5 mph slower, all other factors being equal. It could not be determined whether the pilot inadvertently forgot to extend the flaps during the landing attempt or had chosen not to extend them due to the gusting wind conditions.
The pilot's loss of control occurred during non-traditional traffic pattern operations, and other factors may also have contributed to the pilot's loss of control in flight. The pilot was flying an approach in which his touchdown and landing distance would be measured and judged by spectators and fellow pilots. Regardless of whether the STOL activity being conducted at the time of the accident was part of an official competition, it is likely that the pilot's approach was influenced by the competitive environment. The gusting wind should have resulted in the pilot increasing the airplane's speed on final approach; however, doing so would conflict with the desire to perform a competitive STOL landing. Additionally, while the accident pilot had completed STOL Drag training and was certified to compete in STOL Drag racing, no training was required of the pilots participating in the impromptu traditional STOL operations, which was a characteristically different flight activity as compared to STOL Drag racing in which airplanes do not exit ground effect.
An FAA-issued a Certificate of Waiver (CoW), outlined several exceptions to aviation regulations that were required in order to conduct the STOL Drag event. The CoW, in addition to a National Air Race Accreditation Letter and associated policies and procedures, incorporated risk mitigations that included a variety of elements, such as requirements for pilot training and certification, as well as operational wind limitations; however, these risk management controls were not present for the impromptu traditional STOL operations in which the accident pilot was participating. Had risk mitigations like those that were planned for the STOL Drag event been in place and adhered to by the event organizers and the FAA personnel present, it is possible that the accident could have been avoided.
On May 20, 2022, about 1842 central standard time, a Cessna 140 airplane, N76075, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain near the Wayne Municipal Airport (LCG), Wayne, Nebraska. The private pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.
The accident pilot had planned to participate in an aviation event that involved a form of air racing called short takeoff and landing drag racing (STOL Drag). On the day of the accident, in the afternoon, the aviation event was supposed to begin with STOL Drag qualification racing; however, the air racing was postponed to the following day due to gusting wind conditions that were oriented in an unfavorable direction relative to the orientation of the racecourse.
After the postponement decision was made, several of the competing pilots expressed a desire to perform traditional STOL (without any drag racing component) on a grass runway where a more favorable, but gusty, headwind prevailed. A safety briefing was held with representatives of the event organizer, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors who were on site to supervise the STOL Drag event, and pilots who planned to fly in the traditional STOL. A representative of the STOL Drag event organizer informed the pilots that the flying was optional, and it was not a part of the formal air race competition. To limit traffic pattern congestion, multiple groups of 5 airplanes were organized.
According to witnesses and video/photographic evidence, the accident airplane was the last airplane within a group of 5, and all 5 airplanes had each performed two landings without incident. During the third approach, while the accident airplane was on final approach following a slower airplane ahead also on final approach, the accident airplane descended and appeared to be lower than the airplane ahead of it. Subsequently, the accident airplane's pitch attitude increased, it rolled to the right, completed a 3/4-turn right spin, and impacted terrain in a near-vertical attitude. Postaccident examination of the airframe and engine found no evidence of preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Based on this information, it is likely that the accident pilot allowed the airplane to exceed its critical angle of attack while on final approach and the airplane entered an aerodynamic stall and spin at too low an altitude to successfully recover. The strong, gusting wind conditions increased the likelihood of a sudden increase in angle of attack as the pilot approached the runway at a slow speed, already operating near the airplane's critical angle of attack.
The evidence further showed that the accident pilot turned onto final approach early and, as a result, may have been altering his approach path and speed to maintain spacing behind the slower airplane ahead. If the pilot observed his airspeed decaying, given the lack of spacing ahead, adding engine power and/or increasing airspeed would only exacerbate the already close spacing with the airplane ahead. In this case, the only alternative would have been for the pilot to execute a go-around. Additionally, review of high-resolution photographs showed no evidence that the airplane's flaps had been extended on final approach, despite having used flaps for the prior landings. Data from the airplane's operations manual showed that extending the flaps would result in the airplane's stall speed being about 5 mph slower, all other factors being equal. It could not be determined whether the pilot inadvertently forgot to extend the flaps during the landing attempt or had chosen not to extend them due to the gusting wind conditions.
The pilot's loss of control occurred during non-traditional traffic pattern operations, and other factors may also have contributed to the pilot's loss of control in flight. The pilot was flying an approach in which his touchdown and landing distance would be measured and judged by spectators and fellow pilots. Regardless of whether the STOL activity being conducted at the time of the accident was part of an official competition, it is likely that the pilot's approach was influenced by the competitive environment. The gusting wind should have resulted in the pilot increasing the airplane's speed on final approach; however, doing so would conflict with the desire to perform a competitive STOL landing. Additionally, while the accident pilot had completed STOL Drag training and was certified to compete in STOL Drag racing, no training was required of the pilots participating in the impromptu traditional STOL operations, which was a characteristically different flight activity as compared to STOL Drag racing in which airplanes do not exit ground effect.
An FAA-issued a Certificate of Waiver (CoW), outlined several exceptions to aviation regulations that were required in order to conduct the STOL Drag event. The CoW, in addition to a National Air Race Accreditation Letter and associated policies and procedures, incorporated risk mitigations that included a variety of elements, such as requirements for pilot training and certification, as well as operational wind limitations; however, these risk management controls were not present for the impromptu traditional STOL operations in which the accident pilot was participating. Had risk mitigations like those that were planned for the STOL Drag event been in place and adhered to by the event organizers and the FAA personnel present, it is possible that the accident could have been avoided.
Probable Cause: The pilot's exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack on final approach while conducting traditional short takeoff and landing operations in gusting wind conditions, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and spin from which the pilot could not recover. Contributing to the accident was the competitive environment, which likely influenced the pilot's approach speed and the subsequent loss of control.
I owned a 140. Nice enough but underpowered and the handling, especially close to VSO, was never that inspiring so always added 5 knots on the approach for the wife and kids. No way a 140 could be competitive in this sort of event. My condolences.
he slowed to stay behind the competitor in front stalled crashed, no mystery. bad decision, his plane was competing with planes out of his class.
“It appeared Dafoe’s Cessna 140 made an S-turn for spacing behind a Zenith 701 to compensate for the Cessna’s faster speed leading to a stall/spin accident. A lesson general aviation pilots can take away from this accident is to always have a Plan B when following closely behind a slower aircraft-including breaking off and performing a go-around.”
Such a shame. The pilot just lost track of his airspeed. It happens to the best of us. RIP and condolences to his family and beautiful wife.
No. He was well aware of his speed, but what he lost track of was how much aft stick / yoke he was pulling.
Tom Dafoe, lost track of everything, especially how his wife is going to support five kids. Honey I’m going to go climb El Capitan without a rope, tell the kids not to worry cause I got skills. Duh. Now all five kids have to spend the rest of their lives explaining how their dad wasn’t a good pilot.
@@tropicthndr I never understood why people have risky hobbies. I am a pilot and I really enjoy flying. However, I will not fly under questionable conditions. This is a case where Tom made a decision and it cost him his live.
I understand that STOL competitions are fun to watch and there are many YT videos of very experienced pilots performing these maneuvers.
Now some other man will be enjoying his wife's "company" and having his kids call the new man, "Dad" All for what? Because he had an ego and want to compete in a competition so show how big is acorns were?
"The pilot just lost track of his airspeed. It happens to the best of us." Ummm. NO. You lose track of flying because you are not paying attention.
@@6milesup Obviously you are not a pilot. It does happen often. It can be disastrous if it does happen. It has happened to me a few times. The problem is if you do not make necessary corrections, you will die.
I was there. It was really gusty. I felt like that made it harder for him to recognize the incipient stall/spin. Very sad.
I had a cessna 140. Flew it into Watsonville Fly in in Monterey. So much traffic and different makes of planes lots of people doing S turns to not run into the guy in front of them
review of high-resolution photographs showed no evidence that the airplane's flaps had been extended on final approach, despite having used flaps for the prior landings. Data from the airplane's operations manual showed that extending the flaps would result in the airplane's stall speed being about 5 mph slower, all other factors being equal. It could not be determined whether the pilot inadvertently forgot to extend the flaps during the landing attempt or had chosen not to extend them due to the gusting wind conditions.
I'm sure everyone in the comments mentioning anything about stupidity is completely faultless and has a flawless check ride record for the past 20 years. Get over yourselves.
Very sad. Condolences for the pilots family and friends.
You can not ever “ lose track “ of your airspeed . Damn it man - Never ever …. My Dad drummed
That into my brain ! Airspeed -
It Is not "airspeed", It Is exceeding the critical Angle of Attack. Airspeed indirectly modifies AoA, but you can stall a wing at any speed.
All the same, maintaining a higher airspeed would have prevented the stall.
@@gerrycollins2335 The PIC lost airspeed by pulling up, increasing the AoA, and exceeded the critical Angle of Attack causing the stall. Do you know that you can stall an airplane at ANY airspeed and any attitude, even going straight down, directly towards the ground?
As discussed in the video description, these type of competitions basically encourage pilots to fly their approaches closer and closer to the stall limit in the effort to land the shortest. This kind of accident was bound to happen sooner or later...and for what??? Awesome, you can land you plane in 2 less feet than some other dude! Big friggin' deal. It's ridiculous, and it should be stopped before some other pilot makes a simple mistake in a flight configuration where mistakes can too easily lead to exactly this.
For what? To make up the numbers so the 1-2 guys that have airplanes so specialized they trailer them to these events can look even cooler then they already think they do. I don't have a problem with the basic concept; I have a problem with the idea that it's super safe, harmless fun that anyone with an airplane can/should get into.
.and for what???
Well let's ban car racing, bike racing and every other sport that someone can get hurt doing.. not sure why you think this is pointless, some people are willing to give thier life's for thier pleasures.
@@Ryan-re1rs False equivalency. What happened to this guy would be like you taking your Camery to a Nascar race and being free to run laps with the real race cars... he was compelled to slow to a speed his airplane wasn't capable of. His fault or not, it didn't need to happen.
Again, not against the basic concept, but this mixing in of anyone who shows up and wants to run with guys who literally trailer their AIRPLANES around the country to compete is ridiculous.
The other problem is these small airplanes can not be made nearly as safe as cars are for competition, just on weight considerations alone, the structure you'd need to survive a spin from 500ft wouldn't fly very well.
Racing accidents happen, and we expect everyone to walk away. I see a Cessna hit nose down, I expect no one to live.
These things are not the same.
Once you get loss of directional control due to being partially stalled, any instinctive aileron inputs will cause wing drop and full departure from controlled flight.
Basically a competition to see how close you can get to stalling it and not stall it. Shocked when someone does......DERP.
From STOL to STALL.
Yup. One letter away from pride…or died.😢
Condolences to all involved in this tragic event.....
Isn't this event to try to see how close to stall you can get without actually stalling? Seems inherently dangerous.
it has a way of curing stupidity
@@jimmyhaley727ok, then you can say that about every sport, car races and anything you have done that wasn't for pure necessity to live.
Rip. The accident aircrafts pilot earlier in the video on several occasions... seemed to be struggling. Just watched it start to end.
I hate this. As a CFII and a lover of these beautiful old tailwheel airplanes it breaks my heart to see idiots destroying trying to do things they were not meant to do. There are only so many of these planes left, they are never going to make more, and people abuse them and destroy them. It's the same with WWII planes, unqualified pilots flying what little of those historic planes we have left and crashing them.
The 140 was NOT designed for STOL ops. It was designed as a good mix of low stall speed and moderate cruise speed. If you want to play im the STOL league get a Supercub or something with similar airfoil.
Shocking - any time there is a competiion some will risk their lives.
When your plane is underpowered and underbrained
They probably parked the trucks there so that passing motorists couldn't see what can happen in these stupid STOL competitions. RIP.
a month before the crash he was in flying magazine titled "An Aircraft Broker Took the Plunge into Airpark Living. Here’s How It’s Going" how ironic.
Trying to maintain his place…at all cost.
Does insurance cover this sort of activity?
A very strange accident. Was it really an accident?
Guess he forgot to fly the plane.
1:41 in the distance, he is base to final and fast as lightening, closing in on the plane in front, slows slows slows descends stalls
Testosterone gets the best of another pilot. Every pilot is trained in what happens when an aircraft is flown at the edge of its performance envelope. Don’t go there, it is very unforgiving. I was taught to learn from the mistakes of previous pilots.
He was really forcing it off the ground and dragging it in. Gusty conditions, maneuvering and getting carried away extinguished his life.
he was a ca almond farmer that sold out and moved to an airpark, like many ca's are doing fleeing ca and choosing texas.
Airspeed is King / Go Around
Rookie mistake. Airspeed your friend.
😅 maybe wake was also a factor?
Looks like he tried gently turning right to maintain distance from the plane in front, and as he was probably just above stall speed, the rudder and ailerons messed up the airflow just enough to drop the airspeed below stall speed. CZcams is full of crashes where pilots have tried turning at too slow an airspeed causing the inside wing to stall, causing a spin in.
STOL competitions are dangerous and stupid. Basically let me get as close to stall (ie crash) as possible. Do you think a competition seeing how close you can fly to a thunderstorm is smart?
Mr. Adventure has shared an opinion.
He shared a very important observation. Enjoy your "adventure" ... while it lasts 😂@@fuffoon
Such a bummer …so sad to see. Wrong plane for the job…people can do what they want but, all of this style of flying - think about it, a competition to see how close they can get to stol speed, limits and margins of lift, tensions and emotions high, pressuring the pilots … and, to gain what? I love flying but these get together don’t seem healthy to me…if one doesn’t live to fly another day…who won? This dear gentleman left a gorgeous, young family to mourn his loss forever … not to speak of his parents, brothers, sisters, friends…. Sorry, I fly alone, far from others, no pressure, no spectators, no ego … I try to always fly with my copilot, PRUDENCE…
I don’t believe the pilot of the C140 had any expectation of beating any of the top experimentals. He may have been there for his own experience and perhaps for a comparison with similar airplanes to the Cessna 140. I don’t understand the point of the video showing takeoff and landing comparisons between the C140 and the “Lawn Mower”.
Did anyone else notice his flaps werent down? Surely it wasnt as simple a mistake as that?
Regardless of the conditions, he let the AC stall.
These events are senseless.
I agree with this statement. Humans thrive on competition and always have. Accidents or what I call “on purpose” will continue to happen but we cannot just sit and watch TV and vegetate. Sorry for the family.
he near stalls the plane 3 times in 3 seconds, you can see it drop and he pulls back, did it 3 times too many, 6 seconds later, dead, competitive competition.
.and for what???
@@jimmyhaley727 recognition of his abilities, or lack thereof
You can't stall a plane unless you pull the stick back into the stall stick position. Airspeed is an irrelevant factor in a stall. AOA is everything. Don't pull the stick back.
... better check your knowledge on that, Chippy. Answer this one... pull on the stick until the aircraft is in a vertical climb, neutralize the stick, keep the stick in the neutral position; what will happen?
These events are stupid in my opinion. Its kinda equivalent to an auto race where none of the cars have brakes. You know only something bad can happen.
.and for what???
yep airspeed
Mayday huh?
The person filming the accident was holding the pilot's beer.
To slow and low.
God Dam! your kinda late to the game, tuber.
*damn
@@AphexTwinII *you're
RIP
Don't fly for fun. Only military or commercial.
Question: I have a L19! Birddog. And the had originally no stall warning ! Mine has . Does the C140 have a stall warning ?
Yeah they have a stall warning
Slow and turning downwind
Play stupid games...
stall spin