NTSB Releases Preliminary Report on Vanyo Accident

Vanyo was killed in his amateur-built CubCrafters Carbon Cub near Twisp, Washington, last month. Twisp is 112 miles north of Moses Lake in an area popular for outdoor recreation.

According to the NTSB, on the morning of October 1 Vanyo was taking a flight accompanied by a friend who also owned a Carbon Cub, a popular backcountry aircraft known for its STOL capability.

The two airplanes launched from a private airfield and flew directly to a hillside located about 2 nm away. The friend landed uphill on the slope of the hillside and positioned his airplane to the west of a tree.

Using a radio, the friend advised Vanyo that he should land in between the parked airplane and the tree. According to the friend, Vanyo made two low passes over the ridge, performing reconnaissance over the landing area, then the friend "observed the airplane touch down on the slope further to the east of his location (on the wrong side of the tree) and land upslope. After a short landing roll, the Vanyo appeared to abort the landing. During the attempt to take off, the airplane's left wheel collided with a large rock, resulting in the left landing gear folding under the fuselage.

The damaged Cub continued over the ridge to the east, then the friend lost sight of the airplane. He radioed Vanyo to ask if he was OK, and Vanyo replied, “I’m flying, but I’m having problems.” The airplane collided with terrain shortly thereafter. Rescuers reported finding Vanyo dead at the scene.

The wreckage was strewn over approximately 90 feet, beginning with "points of contact consisting of disrupted dirt on the upslope of a hill." Investigators found chips of silver paint and small pieces of fabric, along with numerous vortex generators in the dirt and outboard wingtip structure. A large portion of the forward left wingtip was found 25 feet from the main wreckage, along with pieces of plexiglass and splinters of propeller that led up to the main fuselage, which was found on its left side with the right wing folded forward over the engine.

The tires came to rest near the belly pod. The left tire was flat and had several gouges and scrapes on the rubber, and the metal hub was bent and folded over itself. The landing gear struts had collapsed, and the bottom of the left struts were separated and appeared to have been worn from being dragged across terrain.

The left wing was crushed and came to rest inverted. The left forward and aft lift wing struts had separated but remained attached to their respective fittings on the fuselage and wing.

The fuselage frame behind the left lift-strut fork and gear-strut connection fittings was deformed. The left-aileron pulley, located adjacent to the deformed frame, could not be moved, as the aileron cable was trapped between the frame and pulley. Free movement of the cable is essential for activation of the aileron and aircraft control.

An approximate 1.5-foot piece of the left aft-lift strut remained attached to the airframe, with the trailing edge of both portions of that strut exhibiting black marks consistent with tire rubber. The flaps appeared to be partially down, and the fuel selector was in the off position. However, it could not be determined if this action was performed by Vanyo or rescue personnel responding to the accident.

Investigators could not definitely determine the point of first impact but did find tracks in the dry grass on the slope consistent with the landing direction. In addition, a large rock with numerous impact marks was located on the saddle of the hill. In the surrounding area, several silver chips of paint and a zip tie were found that would have been on the landing gear

The NTSB is continuing its investigation, with the final report likely several months away.