Pilot Debrief

NORTH AMERICAN P 51D near Galveston, TX — 2013-10-23

Final reportCEN14LA015
Sign in to save
Date
2013-10-23
Location
Galveston, TX, USA
Aircraft
NORTH AMERICAN P 51D
Registration
N4151D
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
Fatal
Fatalities
2
Phase of flight
Maneuvering

Probable cause

The pilot's loss of situational awareness while instructing the passenger, which resulted in the controlled flight of the airplane into the water.

NTSB narrative

The pilot and passenger departed on the flight in a vintage warbird airplane. After departure, radar tracked the flight along a bay in a southwestern direction. A witness reported that he heard the airplane overhead heading south and that he then saw the airplane slowly turn north and appear to descend at a high rate of speed before it impacted the water. The airplane was largely fragmented upon impact. The flight was recorded by an onboard video recording system. A review of the video revealed that, a few minutes into the flight, the pilot asked the passenger if he'd like to fly the airplane. The passenger replied he was not a pilot, but he'd like to try it. The video showed that, with the passenger at the controls, the airplane steeply banked right to about 90 degrees, and the nose dropped; the pilot explained that back pressure was needed on the stick during turns to prevent the loss of lift. The conversation continued as the airplane was rolling to wings level and as the pilot was encouraging the passenger to pull back on the stick. During this time, the video showed the airplane descending toward the water. Neither the pilot nor passenger acknowledged the impending collision. It is likely that the pilot's focused attention on instructing the passenger contributed to the his lack of recognition of the impending collision. It could not be determined if the water's smooth surface contributed to the pilot's loss of situational awareness. The accident is consistent with the pilot's loss of situational awareness resulting in controlled flight into the water.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Human factors
First missed decision gate
Pilot should not have allowed passenger to control the aircraft.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • Video
  • ADS-B / radar
  • 8 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents8

Related mishaps