Crash location | 27.953056°N, 80.559722°W |
Nearest city | Valkaria, FL
27.963631°N, 80.543664°W 1.2 miles away |
Tail number | N87026 |
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Accident date | 29 Jul 2007 |
Aircraft type | Engineering & Research Ercoupe 415-C |
Additional details: | None |
The pilot stated that the flight was returning from a pleasure flight. He entered the traffic pattern for landing on runway 27; however, there was one airplane in the traffic pattern for runway 32. He was a little high on final approach and elected a go-around. He climbed to 800 feet and went to the shoreline, then reentered the traffic pattern for runway 27. The airplane was again high and when the flight was 1/2 way down the runway he performed a second go-around. This time he flew to the Indian River and returned for landing on runway 27. When the flight was over the numbers, he pulled aft on the yoke. He felt the airplane sinking when it was about 50 feet above the ground. He added full power, and about that time, the right wing stalled, the nose dropped, and right wing impacted the runway, followed by the nose. The airplane slid about 100 feet and was facing 90 degrees from the original flight path before it came to a stop. The pilot and passenger exited the airplane without assistance. The pilot stated there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions to the airplane or any of its systems prior to the accident.
The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent stall and subsequent collision with the runway.