NTSB Blames Partial Power Loss and Abrupt Maneuver for Fatal Cessna Crash

A partial loss of engine power, an aircraft out of center of gravity, and an abrupt maneuver are blamed for the 2023 crash of a Cessna 177 RG Cardinal that killed Richard McSpadden, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Air Safety Institute senior vice president, and former New England Patriots tight-end-turned-FBO-owner Russ Francis.

The final report on the accident investigation was released Tuesday by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) almost two years to the day of the crash at Lake Placid Airport (KLKP) in New York.

The purpose of the flight on October 1, 2023, was to obtain air-to-air shots of Francis’ aircraft for an AOPA Pilot magazine article. According to the NTSB report, the plan was for Francis to fly the Cardinal during takeoff and climbout and turn over the controls to McSpadden so he could fly it during the close formation photo shoot.

McSpadden served 20 years in the U.S. Air Force and is best known as commander and flight leader of the Thunderbirds demonstration team.

• READ MORE: NTSB Releases Preliminary Report on McSpadden Accident

The report notes that Francis had a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for both airplanes and helicopters. He had approximately 9,000 hours of flight experience of which approximately 10 were in the accident airplane make and model.

McSpadden’s experience in a Cessna 177RG could not be determined because “no pilot logbooks were recovered or provided.” McSpadden held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single land and sea, and multiengine land and sea as well as instrument airplane. He also held a flight instructor certificate and a type rating for a Cessna 525 and a drone certificate. At the time of his last medical application in May 2023 he reported 5,800 flight hours.

According to the NTSB, several days before the accident Francis asked a flight instructor if he would sit in the right seat of the airplane to accompany him on a practice flight to prepare for the photo flight. The instructor agreed, having already flown the airplane several times. The CFI read off the checklist for the pilot, and they discussed what the pilot in command (PIC) would do in an emergency during the takeoff roll and departure. 

The takeoff was normal, but when they were approximately 200 feet in the air, they heard a noise and then felt a draft. The flight instructor turned around and saw that the baggage door was wide open. At this point the aircraft was roughly 500-800 feet above ground, and the pilot “immediately made a very steep bank to the left to turn back to the runway’s approach end” and landed, according to the NTSB. 

Investigators reviewed the GPS data from the practice flight and determined the airplane had lifted off from the runway and began a sharp roll to the left, reaching a roll angle of 40 degrees before rolling back to the right. The airplane then reached a roll angle of 27 degrees as it aligned with the runway.

During the left turn, the track angle changed by about 9.6 degrees per second, compared with a standard-rate turn of 3 degrees.The airplane reached a maximum altitude of about 400 feet agl during the left turn before it descended and landed. Analysis of this previous air turnback to land revealed that it was similar in nature to the aggressive air turnback observed during the accident flight.

The Airport

Lake Placid Airport sits at an elevation of 1,747 feet above msl. It has a single runway, aligned 14/32, measuring 4,196 feet long by 60 feet wide, and has nonprecision markings in good condition that feature a touchdown point. The airport runway is located on top of a plateau.

The informational page for KLKP on Airnav.com notes that both runway approaches have obstacles. Runway 14 has 77-foot-high trees located 884 feet from the runway and 334 feet left of centerline, requiring a glideslope of 3.5 degrees to clear. The normal glideslope is 3 degrees. Runway 32 has trees 25 feet tall approximately 266 feet from the runway and 71 feet right of the centerline.

The recorded weather at the nearest airport at the time of the accident at Adirondack Regional Airport, Saranac Lake (KSLK) in New York, located about 13 nm to the northwest of KLKP, was reported as wind from 010 degrees true at 7 knots, 10 sm visibility, clear skies, a temperature of 23 degrees Celsius, a dew point of 12 C, and an altimeter setting of 30.20 inches of mercury.

The photo platform aircraft was a Beech A36 with a photographer on board and the aft right door removed. The Beech took off first.

Witnesses on the ground stated that during the taxi to the runway the Cardinal’s engine was running when the Beech pulled up next to it, then the Cardinal’s engine shut off, then restarted some five seconds later. The Cardinal took off approximately 700 feet behind the Beech. The plan was for the aircraft to form up at a preselected altitude for the photo mission.

According to multiple pilot-rated witnesses on the ground, the Cardinal appeared to be having trouble accelerating. One witness stated that during the takeoff roll, the engine of the Cardinal did not sound right. The witness stated that the propeller sounded as if it was set for climb and not for takeoff, then the engine surged and the witness said it sounded as if it was not producing full power as it climbed out.

Another witness reported seeing “white smoke” briefly come out its exhaust pipes just after liftoff. Both reported that the Cardinal made a “gentle left turn at an altitude of approximately 300 to 400 feet above ground level (agl) to join up with the Beech.” The Cardinal was within 1,000 feet of the Beech when it suddenly made a hard right turn back toward the airport.

During the turn, the pilot of the Beech heard the pilot-rated passenger transmitting on the common traffic advisory frequency—something similar to “we have a problem and we’re returning to the airport.”

A witness on the ground stated the Cardinal, as it turned to the right, was not making a squared off base leg but rather a continuous turn toward the runway, and “when the airplane’s heading was 80  to 90 [degrees] off the runway heading and it was still 300 to 400 feet agl, the nose dropped down, and the airplane continued to turn right heading for the runway threshold.”

The Cardinal came down some 440 feet from the runway and 250 feet to the left of centerline, hitting an embankment in a right-wing, nose-low attitude about 15 feet below the top of the plateau. The airplane then slid about 30 feet down the embankment and came to rest on the side of the slope upright, with its left wing oriented toward the upslope and its right wing oriented downslope.

The photographer aboard the Beech captured images of the Cardinal that were reviewed by the NTSB and “showed no evidence of any open doors, smoke, or liquids leaking from the accident airplane. The photographs also indicated that the flaps were partially extended and that, just before impact, the landing gear may have been in transit and a nose-up pitch input was being applied.”

Witnesses to the accident who were first on scene reported both McSpadden and Francis were alive when they reached them. First responders noted fuel was pouring out of the aircraft when they arrived. Both McSpadden and Francis subsequently died from their injuries. 

Performance Details

The NTSB investigation revealed that at the time of the flight the density altitude was approximately 2,758 feet above msl, which would result in reduced aircraft performance. The agency said the pilot would need to increase takeoff distance by 27 percent and expect a similar percentage reduction in climb performance, resulting in more runway consumed and sluggish climb rate.

Investigators did not find a calculated weight and balance for the accident flight, but the airplane’s takeoff weight was estimated using information from the pilot’s operating handbook (POH) and a balance form found in the airplane’s maintenance records. Based on calculations done with an estimated fuel load of 40 gallons (out of a 60-gallon usable fuel capacity), plus the reported weight of the occupants, the airplane’s total weight at the time of takeoff would have been about 292 pounds below its maximum gross weight and the center of gravity would have been about 1 inch forward of the CG limit.

If the aircraft launched with a fuel load of 60 gallons, the airplane’s total weight would have been 172 pounds below its maximum gross weight, and the CG would have been about 1.2 inches forward of the CG limit. Investigators note that operation of an airplane outside the approved CG limits results in control difficulty. Limits for the location of the CG are established by the manufacturer and published in the POH. Determining the location of the CG is one of the tasks a pilot should perform before each flight, as this has a direct effect on aircraft performance.

“If the CG is displaced too far forward on the longitudinal axis, a nose-heavy condition will result which can cause problems in controlling and raising the nose, especially in takeoff and landing,” the NTSB report said. “During landing, one of the most critical phases of flight, exceeding the forward CG limit often results in decreased performance, higher stalling speeds, and higher control forces. In extreme cases, a CG location beyond the forward limit may result in nose heaviness, making it difficult or impossible to flare for landing.”

The actual location of the CG can be altered by many factors controlled by the pilot, such as placement of baggage, passengers and ballast such as bags of sand or lead shot, or even a case of oil.

“For the accident flight, the pilot could have added ballast in the baggage compartment to obtain a favorable balance,” the report noted. “There was no evidence of added ballast on the accident flight.”

Investigators determined the probable cause of the accident to be the pilot’s failure to perform weight and balance calculations led to the airplane taking off outside its forward CG limit, which likely degraded the controllability of the airplane. The subsequent partial loss of power during the takeoff and climb, along with the higher-than-normal density altitude, likely reduced the airplane’s climb performance substantially.

The NTSB added that the pilot’s subsequent aggressive use of the flight controls to turn back to the airport ultimately resulted in the airplane exceeding its critical angle of attack and entering an aerodynamic stall at an altitude from which a safe recovery by the pilot was not possible.

The complete NTSB final report can be found below: