At about 11:05 MDT, a homebuilt RV-4 crashed while maneuvering about six miles northeast of Bayfield. The pilot and passenger were killed. A friend in another RV-4 said the two pilots had planned to go to Durango and back as a flight of two airplanes. He took off first, and the accident airplane departed shortly thereafter. During the return, he radioed the accident airplane but got no response. He circled back and found the wreckage of the second airplane. Several witnesses said the two airplanes were flying at low altitude, with the accident airplane lower. One witness said he saw the accident airplane perform a barrel roll, immediately followed by a vertical loop. A witness on the property adjacent to the accident site said the airplane did not appear to have enough altitude to be able to recover from the loop.
Sept. 1, Bayfield, Colo. / RV-4
At about 11:05 MDT, a homebuilt RV-4 crashed while maneuvering about six miles northeast of Bayfield. The pilot and passenger were killed. A friend in another RV-4 said the two pilots had planned to go to Durango and back as a flight of two airplanes. He took off first, and the accident airplane departed shortly thereafter. During the return, he radioed the accident airplane but got no response. He circled back and found the wreckage of the second airplane. Several witnesses said the two airplanes were flying at low altitude, with the accident airplane lower. One witness said he saw the accident airplane perform a barrel roll, immediately followed by a vertical loop. A witness on the propert...
Key Takeaways:
- An RV-4 homebuilt aircraft crashed approximately six miles northeast of Bayfield, resulting in the fatalities of both the pilot and passenger.
- The accident occurred during a planned flight of two aircraft, with the companion pilot discovering the wreckage after losing radio contact.
- Witnesses reported the aircraft performing a barrel roll immediately followed by a vertical loop at low altitude, appearing to lack sufficient height to recover from the maneuver.
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