Amateur-built Titan N226BW accident near Slaughter, Louisiana

Probable cause

The pilot's incorrect use of pitch control, resulting in induced pitch oscillations and loss of aircraft control. Contributing to the accident were the pilot's total lack of experience in aircraft make/model, and his lack of recency of experience.

NTSB analysis

The pilot had just purchased the experimental light sport airplane and was ferrying it to his home airport. Witnesses said that after the airplane took off, it started what appeared to be a pilot-induced oscillation. The pilot returned to the airport and was attempting to land when it collided with terrain. The oscillations continued all the way to the ground. The former owner told FAA inspectors that the pilot was over-correcting, or chasing the oscillations. He also said the airplane was quite sensitive around the lateral (pitch) axis. The pilot was a student pilot, and had never flown this airplane or any other light sport aircraft (LSA). The last time he had flown was almost a year before the accident. The airplane's last conditional inspection was more than two years old. The airplane's previous owner told FAA inspectors that the airplane was sold on an "as is, where is" basis, and the new owner was fully aware of these stipulations.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN09LA255 for the full record.