THE DTSB
The DTSB determines the probable Cause of this accident to be Pilot Error, in that the accident aircraft pilot elected to take off from runway 23 in very high winds from the west, which were coming over pronounced terrain towards the aircraft departure path. The accident aircraft was being flown to Florida with a new owner (left seat) and a CFI. The CFI survived the crash and provided narrative. The flight instructor stated that after takeoff and during the initial climb, about 200 ft above ground level, the engine decreased in power from 2,500 rpm to about 1,500 rpm. A few seconds later the engine decreased to about 500 rpm and then lost all power. The flight instructor took over control of the airplane and tried to make a turn back to the airport. When he made a right turn, he realized that the airplane was too low. He then made a slight left turn to avoid a house before the airplane impacted a tree. It is likely that the aircraft was fully aerodynamically stalled at it’s first contact with the tree, and fell vertically to it’s resting location. The engine was running at low power at the time of impact point. The flight path is consistent with an LOTOT/ROTOT/Impossible Turn from around 200 feet AGL. The wreckage was located in a driveway at 12 Wyndham Way, Milton, NY. The left seat pilot was alive after impact but badly injured and could not extricate himself from the burning wreckage. The right seat passenger (CFI) was ejected from the fuselage during the impact and is now recovering in serious condition. The Probable Cause of this accident remains as Pilot Error, in that both pilots attempted an impossible turn and lost all energy in the turns.