Westfield Township, OH, USA
N550BS
CUB CRAFTERS CC18 180
According to the pilot, he departed on a cross-country flight to his home airport. He planned to arrive about sunset and land to the west. The pilot's last recollection of the events leading up to the accident was initiating a right turn from the base to final leg in the traffic pattern. The airplane wreckage was found inverted on the runway, adjacent to a tree line near the approach end. A semicircular, concave indentation on the leading edge of the right wing exhibited wood and paint transfer marks consistent with marks found on a severed treetop and branches at the initial point of impact. It is likely that the pilot misjudged the airplane's height above the trees when he turned onto final and was flying toward the setting sun.
On March 28, 2015, about 1958 Eastern daylight time, a Carbon Cub 18-180 airplane, N550BS, was substantially damaged when it impacted trees and terrain during the landing at Crazy Bob's Airfield (2OI4), Westfield Center, Ohio. The commercial pilot performed the flight while visual meteorological conditions prevailed. No flight plan was filed for the personal flight conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The solo pilot received serious injuries. The airplane departed Loraine County Regional Airport (LPR), Loraine/Elyria, Ohio about 1900, with Crazy Bob's Airfield as the intended destination. In a written report to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the pilot reported that he obtained the flight's weather planning information using television and radio weather reports. His departure time was 1930, and sunset occurred at 2015. The destination runway was runway 27. The pilot further acknowledged that the turn from base to final was the last memory he could recall pertaining to the events of the accident. The initial point of impact was located in the southern tree line near the approach end of runway 27. One large treetop, approximately 3 inches in diameter with what appeared to be yellow paint transfer from the right wing of the airplane, was found suspended in the tree line, along with several smaller branches found on the ground in the same vicinity. The airplane wreckage was situated on the runway, approximately 100 feet from the initial point of impact, adjacent to the tree line. The airplane was intact and came to rest inverted. The airplane was moved into the pilots' hangar at the airport where a post-accident examination was conducted under the supervision of an FAA Inspector. The examination revealed there were no pre-impact mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. The right wing leading edge, outboard of wing's lift strut attachment, had a semi-circular, concave indentation, and a 12 inch span-wise dent, which was 8 inches deep. An examination of the onboard engine data management system revealed that manifold pressures and exhaust gas temperatures were indicative of an ascent to a cruising power, cruise flight, and a descent.
The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from trees during a base-to-final turn while landing toward the sun.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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