Event CEN17LA327

Factual narrative

On August 21, 2017, about 1845 mountain daylight time, a Rans S-17 airplane, N117BE, ground looped at the Erie Municipal Airport (KEIK), Erie, Colorado. The uncertificated pilot sustained minor injuries and the airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to and operated by the pilot under the provisions of 14 Code of Federals Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which operated without a flight plan. The local flight was originating at the time of the accident.According to information provided by the pilot, after departing on runway 15, during the initial climb, the engine did not seem to be producing full power. The pilot reduced engine power, attempted to reject the takeoff, and land back on the runway. Wind pushed the airplane to the right, the left wing rose, and the right wing contacted the ground. The airplane spun around on the ground and came to rest upright. Substantial damage was sustained to the fuselage and right wing. Information, gathered by the responding Federal Aviation Administration Inspector, revealed that the pilot did not possess a pilot certificate. In addition, the pilot had not flown since 2010, and had no more than 2 hours of recent flight experience. The pilot stated that he had checked the spark plugs before the accident flight. He felt that he did not properly install the plugs. Following the accident, the pilot ran the engine several times and the engine appeared to produce power. A review of meteorological data revealed that the density altitude at the time of the accident was about 7,300 ft. At the accident time, the automated weather reporting facility at KEIK reported a wind from 040° at 3 knots. The wind would have been a left quartering tailwind. The noncertificated pilot of the experimental amateur-built airplane reported that, during the initial climb, the engine did not seem to be producing full power, so he attempted to reject the takeoff and land back on the runway. During the landing, the wind pushed the airplane to the right, the left wing rose, and the right wing contacted the ground. The airplane spun around and came to rest upright. The pilot had not flown since 2010 and had no more than 2 hours of recent flight experience. The pilot stated that he had checked the spark plugs before the accident flight and thought that he did not properly install the plugs; however, following the accident, the pilot ran the engine several times and the engine appeared to produce power. The wind conditions at the time of the accident would have resulted in a left quartering tailwind during landing. This, coupled with the density altitude of about 7,300 ft, would have significantly decreased the airplane's performance and could have given the perception to the noncertificated, inexperienced pilot that the engine had experienced a partial loss of power. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
• C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Tailwind-Effect on operation - C
• C Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Temp/humidity/pressure-High density altitude-Effect on operation - C
• F Personnel issues-Experience/knowledge-Experience/qualifications-Total experience-Pilot - F
• F Personnel issues-Experience/knowledge-Training-Training with equipment-Pilot - F
• — Personnel issues-Experience/knowledge-Experience/qualifications-Qualification/certification-Pilot