Unsecured Cockpit Door Focus of NTSB Probe Into Fatal RV-10 Crash

Witness told investigators that as the Van’s kitplane cleared the end of the runway, he saw an arm reach up and pull down the open left-side, gull-wing door.

Meg Godlewski

Friday, January 31, 2025 at 04:15 PM ET

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Edited By:

Kimberly Johnson

Fullerton Municipal Airport [Credit: City of Fullerton]

Key Takeaways:

NTSB investigators are scrutinizing an unsecured cockpit door as a causal factor in the fatal crash of a Van's RV-10 near Fullerton Municipal Airport.
Witnesses and video surveillance indicated the aircraft's left door was not flush during takeoff, leading to an emergency return attempt that ended in a crash during an aggressive left turn.
The investigation revealed the pilot did not install a manufacturer-recommended secondary safety latch and had made unauthorized modifications to the door's locking system and latch indicator, which would not have warned of an unlatched forward pin.

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Accident investigators are scrutinizing an unsecured cockpit door as a causal factor in the fatal crash of an Van’s RV-10 crash into a factory near Fullerton Municipal Airport (KFUL) in California.

The January 2 accident was caught on a video surveillance camera across the street from the airport. Audio shared by Los Angeles’ KABC-TV indicated the kitbuilt aircraft took off from KFUL around 2 p.m. PST from Runway 24 with the pilot and his 16-year-old daughter on board.