Amateur-built Kolb Mark N208NS accident near Mystic, Connecticut

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during final approach, resulting in an inadvertent stall. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of total flight experience.

NTSB analysis

According to the sport pilot, he was test flying the experimental airplane in the traffic pattern. While on final approach, with a flap setting of 20 degrees, he increased the flaps to 40 degrees. At that time, the airplane began to stall and he tried to increase engine power. He stated that when the airplane stalled, his airspeed was too slow and he was too low. The left main landing gear contacted the top of some trees and then impacted the ground. The pilot stated that he had about 4 hours in the accident airplane and that he was still test flying it. His total time in make and model was approximately 9 hours and his total pilot time was about 60 hours.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA09LA531 for the full record.