| Crash location | 38.721111°N, 77.515000°W |
| Nearest city | Bristow, VA
38.722895°N, 77.536101°W 1.1 miles away |
| Tail number | N781MA |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 30 Oct 2016 |
| Aircraft type | Diamond Aircraft Ind Inc Da 20 |
| Additional details: | None |
According to the pilot, after multiple previous landings that night to runway 34L, he reported that the airplane was thrown "off course" after it encountered a crosswind. The pilot pulled the power off briefly during the landing and the airplane touched down. However, he reported that he made a late decision to go-around and reapplied the power in hopes of establishing a climb. The airplane was "off course" at a low airspeed, and he applied full power; but he panicked and reduced his right rudder application and the airplane veered to the left. The airplane stalled and impacted the ground, the nose landing gear became imbedded in the mud and the airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing root, and empennage.
According to the airport security camera video, the airplane descended over runway 34L, and made an immediate sharp left turn 270° to the left of the runway heading, and rapidly ascended. After the sharp left turn, the airplane was airborne for about 534 ft. before impacting the ground and nosing over.
White paint transfer markings observed on the runway surface, and damage to the airplane's left wing indicated that the airplane had impacted the runway surface during the accident sequence.
About 25 minutes prior to the accident, the published METAR for the accident airport reported that the wind was out of 320° true at 6 knots. There were no reported wind gusts at the time of the accident, and there were no published wind gusts at the airport for the remainder of the day.
The pilot reported that he has 99 hours of total flight time, 78 hours in the accident airplane make and model, and a total of 4 hours of flight time within the last 90 days prior to the accident.
The pilot reported that there were no pre-accident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
The pilot’s loss of directional control during a landing attempt at night, which resulted in a delayed go-around procedure and subsequent impact with terrain. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s lack of recent flight experience.