Lancair Columbia 400 Prototype Lost During Spin Trials
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Dorset
Posts: 902
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Lancair Columbia 400 Prototype Lost During Spin Trials
Just found the attached on PilotWeb:
Full story
Local news report
Lancair
Pilot
Makes you realise why these guys get the big bucks!!
Test pilot bails out 28/08/2003
28 August 2003: A test pilot parachuted to safety yesterday morning after a spin test of a prototype Lancair Columbia 400 went wrong.
Aero-News Network reports: The accident occurred at about 10:30 am Wednesday morning, during flight-testing to evaluate adjustments to the prototype's elevator and rudder control surfaces. During the flight, involving a series of successful spin recoveries, Fox intentionally forced the aircraft into a further spin and then attempted to recover it from that spin.
When his attempts to recover failed, Fox deployed a "spin chute", a small parachute that is attached to the tailcone of the development aircraft for the sole purpose of causing the aircraft to recover from a spin in this type of test situation. The spin chute worked as designed and Fox recovered the aircraft from the spin. However, for reasons yet unknown, Fox was unable to then jettison the chute and the aircraft was rendered unflyable, due to the excessive drag produced by the spin chute.
The test series reportedly started at 14,000 feet. The spin-chute aided recovery was initiated at 10,000 and following its failure, Fox left the aircraft at 3000 feet, suffering only minor injuries.
"When testing a new aircraft, it is put into extreme situations to evaluate how it will behave," said Lancair's President, Bing Lantis. "It is essential for people to realize that the accident today was the result of a malfunction of an auxiliary safety system, installed only on test aircraft, during extreme flight conditions."
28 August 2003: A test pilot parachuted to safety yesterday morning after a spin test of a prototype Lancair Columbia 400 went wrong.
Aero-News Network reports: The accident occurred at about 10:30 am Wednesday morning, during flight-testing to evaluate adjustments to the prototype's elevator and rudder control surfaces. During the flight, involving a series of successful spin recoveries, Fox intentionally forced the aircraft into a further spin and then attempted to recover it from that spin.
When his attempts to recover failed, Fox deployed a "spin chute", a small parachute that is attached to the tailcone of the development aircraft for the sole purpose of causing the aircraft to recover from a spin in this type of test situation. The spin chute worked as designed and Fox recovered the aircraft from the spin. However, for reasons yet unknown, Fox was unable to then jettison the chute and the aircraft was rendered unflyable, due to the excessive drag produced by the spin chute.
The test series reportedly started at 14,000 feet. The spin-chute aided recovery was initiated at 10,000 and following its failure, Fox left the aircraft at 3000 feet, suffering only minor injuries.
"When testing a new aircraft, it is put into extreme situations to evaluate how it will behave," said Lancair's President, Bing Lantis. "It is essential for people to realize that the accident today was the result of a malfunction of an auxiliary safety system, installed only on test aircraft, during extreme flight conditions."
Local news report
Lancair
Pilot
Makes you realise why these guys get the big bucks!!
