N1622T

On August 12, 2005, at 1800 Pacific daylight time, a Navion G airplane, N1622T, sustained substantial damage when it overran the runway and struck a fence during an aborted takeoff. The private pilot and his passenger were not injured. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal local flight. The flight was originating when the accident occurred.

According to the pilot, after he performed a pre-flight inspection of the airplane, he started it and taxied it out of the hangar. The passenger boarded the airplane after closing and locking the hangar doors. The pilot stated that his normal practice was to retract the flaps upon engine start. However, in this case, he intentionally kept the flaps down after engine start in order to allow the passenger to use the steps in the flap to board the airplane. Checking the flap setting before takeoff was not on his checklist, and he did not raise the flaps prior to takeoff.

During the takeoff roll, the pilot "noticed the aircraft wanting to rotate prematurely" and held the nose down until he obtained an airspeed of 70 mph. When he rotated, he found the yoke was "heavy," and the airplane "was not gaining airspeed or much altitude." At midfield with an airspeed of approximately 80 mph and an altitude of approximately 50 feet, he elected to abort the takeoff. After touching down, he "didn't have much runway left." The pilot applied the brakes. However, the airplane departed the runway, and the right wing struck a chain link fence. A small fire started at the right tip tank, which was quickly extinguished by a witness. According to the pilot, the right tip tank was damaged beyond repair. Additionally, approximately 10 inches of the right wing leading edge were crushed, and there were tears in the lower wing skin beneath the impact area.