Cessna 170B N170ED accident near Winterville, North Carolina

Probable cause

The pilot's excessive bank at low altitude, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that he was participating in a "bean bag drop" competition at the airfield. He was flying from the left seat while his right-seat passenger was to drop the bean bag onto the target. He overflew the runway at 70 feet above the ground and banked right to see where the bean bag landed. There was a left-to-right crosswind that pushed him farther right than anticipated. As the airplane approached tall trees at the edge of the airfield, the pilot banked further right to avoid them. The airplane stalled, descended, and collided with the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and wings. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA12CA344 for the full record.