ATL03FA064

The pilot’s exceedence of the design limits of the airplane, which resulted in the overload failure of the horizontal stabilizers, followed by the overload separation of the right wing and subsequent loss of control.

A witness stated she observed the airplane in straight and level flight at 1,500 feet. The airplane appeared to be traveling very fast. The nose of the airplane was observed to descend down to a 45-degree attitude and the airspeed increased. The airplane was observed to start a spin to the right and turned 180-degrees when a wing separated from the airplane. Another witness stated she observed the airplane in a 45-degree nose down attitude. The airplane was making a loud noise similar to an increase in airspeed. The nose of the airplane pitched down 90-degrees and she thought the pilot was performing a stunt maneuver. She then observed parts separate from the airplane and paper falling to the ground. Review of radar data showed the airplane's climb from the departure airport to a cruise altitude of 5, 700 feet. The radar data did not capture the breakup event. Review of failed components submitted to the NTSB Materials Laboratory revealed all failure fractures were consistent with overstress fracture, and there was no evidence of significant wear or corrosion.

HISTORY OF FLIGHT On March 21, 2003, at 1050 eastern standard time, a Cessna 172S, N219ME, registered to Blass Aviation LLC, operated by Elite Flight Center as a 14 CFR Part 91 instructional flight, collided with the ground in the vicinity of Monroe, Georgia. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane was destroyed. The commercial pilot certified flight instructor and dual student pilot were fatally injured. The flight originated from Dekalb-Peachtree Airport, Atlanta, Georgia, on March 21, 2003, at 1033. A witness stated she was driving her car towards Highway 81 on Bold Springs Road. She observed a white airplane approaching her location going from left to right. The airplane was at about 1,500 feet in straight and level flight but was traveling at a very fast airspeed. She observed the nose of the airplane descend down to a 45-degree attitude and the airspeed increased. The airplane was observed to start a spin to the right and turned about 180-degrees when a wing separated from the airplane followed by other pieces of the airplane. The nose pitched straight down and the airplane disappeared from view behind the trees. She called 911 and reported the accident at 10:48. Another witness who was standing in a pasture at the corner of Fannie Thompson Road and Nicholsville Road stated she heard an airplane approaching her location. She looked up and observed the airplane in a 45-degree nose down attitude. The airplane was making a loud noise similar to an increase in airspeed. The nose of the airplane pitched down to a 90-degree attitude. The airplane was at about 200 feet and she initially thought the pilot was performing a stunt maneuver. The witness observed parts of the airplane come off followed by pieces of paper falling to the ground. She called 911 and reported the accident at 10:52. PERSONNEL INFORMATION Review of information on file with the FAA Airman's Certification Division, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, revealed the commercial pilot was issued a commercial pilot certificate on June 25, 2001, with ratings for airplane single engine land, multiengine land, and instrument airplane. In addition the pilot was issued a flight instructor certificate on February 8, 2002, with ratings for airplane single engine land, and instrument airplane. The pilot held a first class medical issued on February 27, 2003, with the restriction, "holder shall wear corrective lenses while exercising the privileges of this airman certificate." Review of the pilot’s logbook indicated that he had a total of 1,329.6 flight hours (1,246.1 hours single-engine airplane and 83.5 hours multiengine airplane), of which 1,216.7 were as pilot-in-command. His logbook indicated that he had accumulated 605.9 hours as a flight instructor. According to the flight school records, the pilot had flown 66 hours in the last 90 days and 16 hours in the last 30 days. The duration of the accident flight was about 0.3 hours. The pilot’s last recorded flight review was conducted on February 8, 2002. Review of information on file with the FAA Airman's Certification Division, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, revealed the student pilot was issued a student pilot and third class medical certificate on February 11, 2003. No limitations were listed on the medical certificate. The student pilot logbook and training records obtained from Elite Flight Center revealed the student pilot had recorded 6.7 dual flight hours since February 6, 2003. AIRCRAFT INFORMATION Review of airplane maintenance records revealed the last recorded annual inspection was completed on March 17, 2003. The airframe had accumulated 1,650.4 hours. Review of Elite Flight Center Dispatch Sheet for March 21, 2003, revealed the Hobbs meter reading at the beginning of the flight was 2066.30 and Tachometer reading was 1649.40. The Hobbs meter and tachometer were destroyed. Review of refueling records obtained from the Elite Flight Center, revealed the airplane was topped off on March 9, 2003, with 7.2 gallons of fuel. The airplane had not been flown since it was topped off. METEOROLOGICAL INFORMATION The nearest weather reporting facility at the time of the accident was Lawrenceville, Georgia. The 1045 surface weather observation was: wind 280-degress at 10 knots, visibility 7 miles, 5,000 scattered, temperature 63 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point temperature 50 degrees Fahrenheit, and altimeter 29.84. WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATION The wreckage was located in a pasture on Fannie Hill Road in Monroe, Georgia. The crash debris line was on a heading of 160-degrees magnetic. The left outside door skin was located at the beginning of the crash debris line. A piece of the left wing tip was located 5 feet down the crash debris line and 5 feet right of the crash debris line. An outboard section of the right elevator was located 36 feet down the crash debris line and 25 feet to the right of the crash debris line. A section of the rudder skin was located 73 feet down the crash debris line and 22 feet left of the crash debris line. A piece of the right wheel fairing was located 82 feet down the crash debris line and 92 feet left of the crash debris line. The trailing edge of the left rear wing tip was located 82 feet down the crash debris line and 61 feet left of the crash debris line. The leading edge of the left wing tip with navigation light was located 133 feet down the crash debris line and 73 feet right of the crash debris line. A piece of the windshield was located 151 feet down the crash debris line and 46 feet right of the crash debris line. The windshield with the lower right corner missing was located 174 feet down the crash debris line and 72 feet right of the crash debris line. The trailing edge of the right wing tip was located 176 feet down the crash debris line and 109 feet right of the crash debris line. The left door assembly and separated window was located on an access road 192 feet down the crash debris line and 153 feet right of the crash debris line. The right wing assembly was located 247 feet down the crash debris line and 31 feet right of the crash debris line. The inboard center section of the left wing was located 258 feet down the crash debris line and 31 feet left of the crash debris line. The rudder balance weight was located 292 feet down the crash debris line and 61 feet right of the crash debris line. The right cabin door window was located 341 feet down the crash debris line and 30 feet right of the crash debris line. A piece of the left outboard elevator was located 341 feet down the crash debris line and 97 feet right of the crash debris line. A piece of the left wing upper skin was located 370 feet down the crash debris line and 14 feet left of the crash debris line. A piece of the right upper outboard wing skin was located 377 feet down the crash debris line and 14 feet left of the crash debris line. The right cabin door was located 439 feet down the crash debris line and 41 feet right of the crash debris line. The engine assembly, propeller, and lower right wing strut were located 506 feet down the crash debris line and 30 feet left of the crash debris line. The left wing, firewall, and instrument panel was located 529 feet down the crash debris line and 36 feet left of the crash debris line. The main cabin area, tailcone, and empennage came to rest 541 feet down and on the crash debris line on a heading of 090-degrees magnetic. The upper and lower left engine cowling was located 558 feet down the crash debris line and 64 feet left of the crash debris line. The left main landing gear tire was located 566 feet down the crash debris line and 5 feet left of the crash debris line. Examination of the crash site revealed the airplane collided with the ground. The engine assembly separated from the firewall and was buried 11/2 feet below the surface of the ground. The propeller assembly was attached to the propeller flange.