U-FITAQP: 12) LOSS OF SPEED AWARENESS
THE DTSB
The DTSB determines the Probable Cause of this accident to be Pilot Error, in that the accident pilot did maneuver the aircraft in flight well below DMMS speed, whereupon the aircraft became fully aerodynamically stalled and then entered a full spin at an altitude below which a recovery was not possible. The aircraft impacted terrain in a nearly vertical flight path. There was no visible ground scar observed surrounding the wreckage.
NTSB
None yet (final report not yet published).
THE DTSB
The DTSB recommends that all pilots of all aircraft rehearse and condition themselves to honor DMMS at all times when in flight below 2500 feet AGL, and to limit bank angles to 30 degrees or less while maintaining DMMS. Even very strong stall and spin recovery is skill sets are often useless at lower altitudes. The DTSB recommends a prevention based mindset by marking DMMS on each airs[peed indicator, and honoring that minimum speed reference during all maneuvering flight below 2500 feet AGL.
NTSB
None issued. NTSB recommendations are rare and usually tied to high-profile accidents.
See the NTSB Recommendation Tracker →