Pilot killed in Carp Airport crash had reported unspecified engine trouble

The high-tech executive piloting a plane that crashed near the Carp Airport in February made a radio call reporting an unspecified engine issue shortly after becoming airborne, says a report released Thursday by the Transportation Safety Board.

The crash claimed the life of Neil Spriggs, 59, the chief executive officer at Nanometrics, a privately-owned Kanata company that produces instruments that measure earthquakes.

An experienced pilot who had a commercial pilot's licence and flight instructor rating, Spriggs was alone in the two-seater Blackshape Prime BS100 aircraft when it crashed into a wooded area a short distance from the airport on Feb. 10.

Spriggs was conducting circuits on Runway 28 at the Carp Airport, the investigation report said. After a touch-and-go following the second circuit, the aircraft climbed straight ahead, likely to conduct a third circuit.

Before the aircraft reached the end of the runway, Spriggs initiated a left turn and made a radio call on the airport aerodrome traffic frequency, reporting an unspecified engine issue.

In aviation-speak, a touch-andgo manoeuvre involves landing on a runway and taking off again without coming to a full stop. The pilot then circles the airport and repeats.

When the aircraft was about 240 metres south of the runway and still in the left turn, Spriggs lost control and the aircraft entered a near-vertical descent before hitting the ground, the report said. Spriggs was fatally injured. The aircraft was destroyed by a post-impact fire.

The report said the weather was suitable for the flight. The aircraft was equipped with a ballistic rescue parachute system, but the emergency rescue system was not activated.

Numerous fatal accidents have occurred involving pilots attempting to turn back to the runway or aerodrome following an engine failure after takeoff, the TSB report noted.

“Given the aircraft's low altitude and low airspeed during the initial climb, turn-back manoeuvres during this phase of flight involve a high level of risk and often lead to a loss of control and collision with terrain.”

The probe into the crash was a limited-scope, fact-gathering investigation with the aim of advancing safety through greater awareness of potential safety issues. Investigations at this level do not contain findings or recommendations.