ERA24LA185

The pilot’s improper installation and inspection of the right lower wing strut attachment bolt, which resulted in the inflight failure of the right wing.

According to witnesses, the airplane departed and climbed to an altitude about 200 to 300 ft above ground level and then turned before the right wing “folded upward” and the airplane descended in a spiral to the ground. Postaccident examination revealed that the right lower wing strut attachment was not properly assembled; the bolt intended to connect the wing strut block to the fuselage bulkhead was threaded through the fuselage structure and tightened, but had not passed through the hole in the strut block, resulting in no load-bearing connection between the wing strut and the fuselage. The absence of deformation or damage to the bolt and wing strut block at the attachment point was consistent with the improper installation of the bolt. Without the structural support of the right lower wing strut, the wing was unable to sustain the aerodynamic loads encountered during the initial climb, resulting in an in-flight structural failure of the right wing. The accident flight was the airplane’s first flight since it was assembled by the pilot. The airplane was unregistered and had not been issued an airworthiness certificate or operating limitations, nor had it been inspected by a designated airworthiness representative or an FAA inspector before the flight.

On April 19, 2024, about 1330 eastern daylight time, an unregistered experimental, amateur-built Bailey-Moyes Dragonfly airplane was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at Sheets Airport (FA42), Groveland, Florida. The private pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to witnesses, the airplane departed to the south, climbed to about 200 to 300 ft above ground level, and then turned east. Shortly thereafter, the right wing “folded upward,” and the airplane entered a spiral descent before impacting terrain about 500 ft east of the departure end of the north-south landing area. An FAA inspector examined the wreckage and reported that the right lower wing strut block bolt had been threaded through the fuselage bulkhead and tightened, but did not pass through the hole in the wing strut block, resulting in no connection between the wing strut and the fuselage. The bolt and the wing strut block exhibited no damage (see Figure 1)._ Figure 1. Fuselage connection point with bolt installation as found (Source: FAA) The accident flight was the airplane’s first flight since it was assembled by the pilot. Inspection of the hangar where the airplane was assembled revealed that no assembly checklist or assembly manual was present in the work area. The airplane did not have a data plate installed and had not been inspected by a Designated Airworthiness Representative (DAR) or an FAA Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) inspector. No airworthiness certificate or operating limitations had been issued for the airplane.