N704ET

On July 20, 1999, at 1155 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 150M, N704ET, collided with trees on the departure end of a private airstrip near Asheboro, North Carolina. The personal flight was operated by the commercial pilot under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 and visual flight rules. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident and no flight plan was filed for the local flight. The airplane sustained substantial damage and the private pilot and commercial pilot both received minor injuries. The flight departed Asheboro, North Carolina, at 1150.

According to the private pilot, the commercial pilot was functioning as a broker and flight instructor in a pre-sale transaction of the airplane. The commercial pilot was providing instruction and a biennial flight review to determine proficiency in the airplane before the sale was finalized. The private pilot stated that he performed a soft-field takeoff, climbed above barriers, and at that point the commercial pilot took the controls. He then recalls sensing a lack of climb and verified a slight descent on the vertical situation indicator. The airplane was then banked hard to the right and he felt a buffet followed by a nose-low attitude. The airplane collided with two sets of trees rendering him unconscious. He regained consciousness when the airplane collided with the ground. He exited the airplane and then re-entered to help the commercial pilot exit.

The soft-field takeoff was attempted from runway 18 with 10 degrees of flaps. The prevailing winds at the time were from 0 degrees at 3 knots. The pilot started the take-off run 300 feet from the approach end of the 3100 foot long runway. After takeoff, the airplane collided with 50-foot trees off the departure end of the runway. At the time of departure, the grass on the runway surface was approximately five inches tall and dry. Fuel was found on the ground at the accident site. No mechanical deficiencies with the airplane were reported by the pilots.