The airplane collided with the Atlantic Ocean at 1325 Eastern time about mile offshore. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed. The pilots son later said the flights purpose was to practice aerobatics, and he was on a nearby beach with a handheld radio acting as a “safety guide.” All communications with the accident airplane were “normal.” The airplane entered a “half Cuban eight” maneuver at an estimated 250 to 260 MPH and “in the middle of the Cuban eight it went into a spin.” The pilots son estimated the airplane had slowed to 100 to 120 mph, which was “too slow,” and lacked the altitude to recover before crashing into the sea.
April 5, 2009, Mastic Beach, N.Y., Curtiss Wright P-40N
The airplane collided with the Atlantic Ocean at 1325 Eastern time about mile offshore. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. Visual conditions prevailed. The pilots son later said the flights purpose was to practice aerobatics, and he was on a nearby beach with a handheld radio acting as a "safety guide." All communications with the accident airplane were "normal."
Key Takeaways:
- A commercial pilot was fatally injured when his airplane crashed into the Atlantic Ocean during a planned aerobatic practice flight, observed by his son from shore.
- The accident occurred while the airplane was performing a "half Cuban eight" maneuver and subsequently entered a spin.
- The spin was attributed to the airplane slowing to an insufficient speed (100-120 mph), coupled with a lack of altitude to recover before impact.
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