Amateur-built RV-14A N5875G accident near Houston, Texas

Probable cause

The bird strike to the airplane’s vertical stabilizer during an approach for landing.

NTSB analysis

The pilot of the personal flight stated that during a two mile final for landing at the destination airport, he encountered a group of four large birds. He pitched the airplane down to avoid striking one of the birds, but he did not have time to avoid them. The airplane struck one of the birds at an airspeed of 105 kts and at an altitude of 880 ft mean sea level. The bird, identified as a black vulture, remained draped around the vertical stabilizer, and there was some loss of stability about the vertical axis. The pilot still had positive control of the airplane, and he declared an emergency landing without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN24LA035 for the full record.