Taylorcraft BC12-65 N36466 accident near Flushing, Michigan

Probable cause

The student pilot’s failure to maintain airspeed during the landing approach, which led to a stall/spin, and the flight instructor’s failure to monitor the approach and provide remedial action before the stall.

NTSB analysis

The flight was an instructional flight with a student pilot and a flight instructor onboard. Video evidence from a ground-based source indicated that the airplane was in a nose-high left turn at a moderate bank angle. As the turn progressed, the airplane appeared to pitch down, and the left bank steepened before the airplane left the frame of the video. The location of the camera indicated that the airplane was making a turn in the traffic pattern from the base leg to the final approach.

Examination of the airplane after the accident confirmed continuity of the flight control systems. Engine examination confirmed crankshaft and valve train continuity. Although the magnetos would not produce a spark, impact damage would have prevented normal operation. No preimpact anomalies were detected that would have precluded normal operation of the airplane, engine, or related systems. Based on the available evidence, it is likely that the airplane's airspeed diminished during the turn to a point where the airplane stalled and entered a spin.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN13FA416 for the full record.