Amateur-built CCX-2300 N668LD accident near Spanish Fork, Utah

Probable cause

The pilot's decision to attempt an unfamiliar takeoff technique, his failure to maintain pitch control during takeoff, and his subsequent decision to retract flaps at a low altitude, which resulted in a descent into a building.

NTSB analysis

The pilot reported that while attempting a “jump” takeoff, which he had only practiced with an instructor two years prior, the airplane assumed a nose high attitude and turned sharply to the left. The pilot pushed the stick forward and used rudder and ailerons to straighten the airplane, but his attempt to decrease the angle of attack was unsuccessful. He then retracted the flaps to “lower the nose,” and the airplane descended and impacted the top of a hangar, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage and left and right wings. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR23LA194 for the full record.