N48MKCrow Fred Noel MUSTANG II · 2013

On April 22, 2014, at 1055 central daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Crow model Mustang II airplane, N48MK, was substantially damaged while landing at Cochran County Airport (F85) near Morton, Texas. The commercial pilot sustained serious injuries. The airplane was registered to and operated by a private individual, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91, without a flight plan. Day visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local test flight that departed F85 about 0945.The pilot reported that the airplane had been recently issued an experimental airworthiness certificate and that the accident occurred during the third flight test. He stated that there were no anomalies with the airplane during his preflight inspection or before takeoff engine run-up. After an uneventful takeoff, he proceeded to a nearby practice area where he completed basic flight maneuvers and measured cruise performance parameters before returning to the airport for a full-stop landing. Upon returning to the airport, the pilot decided to land on runway 22 (2,710 feet by 60 feet, asphalt) because it was longer and wider than the second runway and the prevailing wind from the south-southwest favored either runway. The pilot stated that the airplane bounced after a hard landing and veered off the left side of the runway before he could regain control. The airplane subsequently nosed-over after encountering soft terrain located alongside the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the firewall and vertical stabilizer. The pilot reported no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Additionally, the pilot stated that he had accumulated about 3 hours of flight time in the accident airplane when the accident occurred.

The nearest weather reporting station (MNST2) was located adjacent to the airport property, about 0.3 miles northwest of the accident site. At 1055, the weather observing system reported: wind from 162 degrees at 10 knots, gusting 16 knots; temperature 20 degrees Celsius; dew point 9 degrees Celsius; and an altimeter setting of 30.21 inches-of-mercury.

A postaccident wreckage examination completed by Federal Aviation Administration inspectors established flight control continuity from the cockpit controls to the respective flight control surfaces. The rudder/brake pedals had been displaced upward into the lower instrument panel; however, actuation of the individual brake pedals resulted in the proper operation of the wheel brakes. The postaccident examinations of the airplane revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.