N3249Z

On February 5, 2000, at 1525 hours Pacific standard time, a amateur-built Izatt Mitchell U2 airplane, N3249Z, collided with the ground on a dry lakebed near Jean, Nevada. The airplane was operated by the owner/builder under 14 CFR Part 91, and the pilot was a perspective purchaser of the airplane. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the local area personal flight. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The commercial pilot, the sole occupant, sustained serious injuries. The flight originated from the dry lakebed about 1430.

According to the owner, the pilot is a neighbor of his and was interested in purchasing the airplane. The owner flew the airplane out to the dry lake where the accident occurred and conducted a series of introductory flights for the pilot. He said he spent some time instructing the pilot on the characteristics of the single seat, delta winged airplane to include taxiing, takeoffs, and landings. The pilot flew the airplane twice, the first time for about 1 hour and the second also for 1 hour, which culminated in the accident.

When the airplane did not return to his location after being gone for an hour or so, the owner became concerned and took another airplane to look for it. He spotted the wreckage, landed, and went to the pilot's assistance. While waiting for medical help, the pilot told the owner that he had inadvertently let it get slow, stalled it, and the airplane inadvertently entered a spin. The pilot said he had almost recovered from the spin but ran out of altitude and hit the ground. According to the owner, the pilot said there were no mechanical problems with the airplane.

The owner reported that the fuel tanks contained fuel at the crash site. He said he constructed the airplane in 1983 and has flown it about 265 hours. There were no known discrepancies prior to the accident.

Federal Aviation Administration inspectors and police pilots from the Las Vegas Metro Police department examined the airplane and reported there were no obvious mechanical discrepancies.