Luscombe 8A N77989 accident near Hampton, New Hampshire

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain adequate airspeed while maneuvering to land, which resulted in an exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack and subsequent aerodynamic stall.

NTSB analysis

After departing and completing maneuvers in the local area, the pilot was returning to the departure airport to land. According to the pilot and surveillance video of the accident flight, after the pilot aborted his initial landing attempt the airplane climbed at a low speed and high angle of attack before rejoining the traffic pattern at a low altitude. The pilot described that the airplane was climbing at a lower rate than he had expected, and when the airplane turned from the downwind leg toward final approach, it turned and descended continuously into a prevailing right quartering tailwind. The pilot stated that, as the airplane neared the final approach to the runway, the left wing dropped and it felt like the ailerons were not responding. The airplane then descended in a steep left wing and nose low attitude until it impacted the ground short of the runway.

Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed no evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures of the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. Audio recorded during the airplane’s final descent just before impact indicated that the engine was running at a constant rate with no appreciable change in sound. Additionally, a fractured aileron control cable attach bracket displayed evidence of ductile overstress separation, most likely as a result of the airplane’s impact with trees and terrain.

While the pilot described that the airplane did not climb as he had expected during the go-around attempt, the lack of any mechanical anomalies found during the postaccident examination of the engine, the audio depicting the engine running continuously just before impact, and the lack of weather conditions conducive to the formation of carburetor icing, all implied no reason for the engine to operate with any degraded capability. However, the transition from the pilot’s initial tailwind landing attempt to a go-around as depicted by the surveillance video showed the airplane in relatively extreme bank and pitch attitudes that suggested the airplane was being operated at a low airspeed and close to an aerodynamic stall. Further, the airplane’s loss of altitude as it turned on the final leg of the approach to the runway, the subsequent drop of the left wing described by the pilot, and the pilot’s sensation that the ailerons were not responding were all consistent with a loss of airspeed and subsequent aerodynamic stall.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA25LA115 for the full record.