NTPS Instructor and Student Lost in Training Flight

A training flight from the National Test Pilot School has resulted in an accident that has taken the lives of a Senior NTPS Staffer, Mike Hill, and a foreign student, Ilam Zigante.

The focus of the flight was reported to be spin training... a flight regime already known to have been troublesome in previous Slingby T76 accidents/incidents. According to a statement issued by NTPS, "It is with great sorrow that the National Test Pilot School (NTPS) reports that NTPS Instructor Mr. Michael (Mike) Hill and NTPS Student Mr. Ilam Zigante perished in an accident in a T-67 Slingsby Firefly aircraft on 24 October 2014. The accident occurred during a scheduled NTPS curriculum sortie approximately 28 miles north of the Mojave Air and Space Port (MASP)."

NTSB Preliminary Report

NTSB Identification: WPR15FA021
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, October 24, 2014 in Ridgecrest, CA
Aircraft: SLINGSBY T67M 260, registration: N456FR
Injuries: 2 Fatal.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed. NTSB investigators either traveled in support of this investigation or conducted a significant amount of investigative work without any travel, and used data obtained from various sources to prepare this aircraft accident report.

On October 24, 2014, about 0900 Pacific daylight time, a Slingsby T67M-260, N456FR, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain near Ridgecrest, California. The airplane was registered to L'Avion Inc., Mojave, California, and operated by the National Test Pilot School under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The flight instructor and passenger were fatally injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the instructional flight. The local flight originated from Mojave Airport (MHV), Mojave, about 0832.

Information provided by representatives from the National Test Pilot School revealed that the flight was part of the Flight Test Engineer training program and that the flight had the primary focus of spin training. Following a loss of radar and radio contact with Air Traffic Control, the wreckage was located by company aircraft.

Examination of the accident site revealed that the airplane impacted open desert terrain about 12 miles south of Ridgecrest. Wreckage debris remained within about 10 feet of the main wreckage. Vegetation, about 12 to 18 inches in height, located immediately to the left and right of the aft area of the fuselage appeared to be undamaged. All major structural components were located at the accident site. The wreckage was recovered to a secure location for further examination.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov