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N601GS accident description

Ohio map... Ohio list
Crash location Unknown
Nearest city Wooster, OH
40.779501°N, 81.949866°W
Tail number N601GS
Accident date 29 Jul 2000
Aircraft type Schwarz ZODIAC CH 601
Additional details: None

NTSB Factual Report

On July 29, 2000, at 1622 Eastern Daylight Time, a homebuilt Zodiac CH 601, N601GS, was destroyed during an approach to Wayne County Airport (BJJ), Wooster, Ohio. The certificated private pilot and the passenger were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. A visual flight rules flight plan was filed for the flight, between Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport (YNG), Youngstown, Ohio, and Wayne County. The personal flight was conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

According to a witness, who was also a certificated commercial pilot, the airplane first flew around the airport, then entered a left traffic pattern for landing on Runway 28. When the airplane was turning from base onto final, the witness saw it "stall and start a spin to the left.... The pilot got the rotation stopped, but the nose was high and it mushed out of sight over [a] hill."

The airplane was issued a special airworthiness certificate on March 9, 2000. The last maintenance performed on it was the repair of a muffler on the day before the accident, and at that time, the airplane had 109.6 hours of service. The airplane also had an angle of attack advisory system installed.

Photographs provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) revealed that one propeller blade was shattered, and that all flight control surfaces were at the accident scene. The airplane came to rest on a magnetic heading of 180 degrees.

Computations made by an FAA inspector revealed that the center of gravity was aft of the rearward limit by 3.13 inches, and the airplane was 21.5 pounds over maximum gross weight at the time of the accident.

The pilot had approximately 2,030 hours of flight time, and 111 hours in the accident airplane. His latest second class medical certificate was issued on January 28, 2000.

Toxicological testing was performed on the pilot's remains by the FAA Toxicology and Research Laboratory, with negative results. An autopsy was performed by the Medical Examiner, County of Summit, Akron, Ohio.

On July 31, 2000, the wreckage was released to the pilot's son.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's loss of control of the airplane while turning from base onto final, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin. A factor was the pilot's improper loading of the airplane, outside the weight and balance limitations.

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