| Crash location | 29.855000°N, 102.791666°W
Reported location is a long distance from the NTSB's reported nearest city. This often means that the location has a typo, or is incorrect. |
| Nearest city | Marathon, TX
30.205169°N, 103.244620°W 36.3 miles away |
| Tail number | N73BH |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 02 May 2018 |
| Aircraft type | Hartline J Bon Hartline Kitfox Iii |
| Additional details: | None |
On May 2, 2018, about 1100 central daylight time, an experimental homebuilt Hartline Kitfox III, N73BH, registered to a private individual, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing immediately after takeoff from the Stovall Ranch Nr 4 Airport (6TX9), marathon, Texas. The airline transport rated pilot and 1 passenger sustained minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and a flight plan was not filed. The personal local flight was being conducted under the provisions of Federal Code of Regulations Part 91.
The pilot reported that during takeoff, about 15-feet above the ground, the airplane rolled violently to the right. He applied full aileron and rudder opposite the roll, but the airplane continued to roll to the right. The airplane struck the ground with the right wing and then impacted a mesquite tree.
After the accident, it was discovered that 3 of the 4 hinges connecting the right flaperon hangar rib had come loose. The wooden (spruce) material of the flaperon appeared to by dry rotted where the hinges connected. According to records provided by the owner, the airplane had last flown about 6 months prior to the accident flight. Records showed that the airplane had about 3 hours of flight time since its most recent conditional inspection which was performed on may 23, 2017.
Denny Aerocraft Company Service Bulletin #9, dated September 12, 1991, had identified flaperon hangar rib failures on Kitfox models I, II, and III. The service bulletin identified the area of the attachment to be reinforced with a metal fixture. The accident airplane did not have the fixture installed.