Event CEN20LA383

Factual narrative

On September5, 2020, about 1430 central daylight time, a Stearman A75N1 (PT17), N373VU, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Henderson, Texas. The pilot and 1 passenger sustained minor injuries. The airplane was being operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight. According to the pilot, he sold the airplane and was flying it from Paris, Texas, to Cleveland Texas, for delivery to the buyer. Everything went well on the flight from Paris, Texas, and he landed the airplane at Rusk County Airport (RFI), Henderson Texas, for a fuel stop. The airplane was refueled with about 20 gallons of fuel about 20 minutes prior to takeoff. Upon takeoff from RFI, shortly after rotation, the pilot noted that the airplane seemed to be “mushy,” even though the engine was “screaming,” as if it were producing power. He stated that the airplane “seemed to be hanging from the propeller.” The pilot initiated a left turn to return to the runway and decided to level off. After leveling off, the tail of the airplane impacted trees and the airplane went straight down. The passenger reported noticing after takeoff that the airplane was turning left but the right wing kept going up. The pilot told her to get down. She looked down and all she saw below was trees. She said that she got a glimpse at the instruments, and the airspeed indicator showed about “sixty” when the airplane hit the trees. A witness observed the airplane taxiing on the ramp prior to takeoff. He observed the airplane takeoff from runway 35 and climb to about 150 feet. He thought that the engine appeared to lose power, but it was still running. He saw the airplane turn to the left and appeared to stall. The airplane then disappeared behind a tree line (see figure). Figure. Accident Proximity to Runway 35. The airplane wreckage was found amidst trees in a densely wooded area to the left of the departure end of runway 35 at RFI. The airplane was about 80º nose down, with the empennage resting against a tree. The upper and lower wings were substantially damaged, and the forward section of the fuselage and engine compartment were buckled. The aft section part of the empennage and vertical stabilizer were buckled. Fuel smell was present at the accident site. Visual examination of the engine did not show any obvious pre-impact anomalies. Visual examination of the flight controls did not reveal any pre-impact anomalies. One of the wooden propeller blades was splintered consistent with rotation at impact, and one blade was broken at the tip. A fuel sample taken from the source at RFI tested normal. After about 2.5 hours of uneventful flight, the pilot landed the airplane for a fuel stop. About 20 minutes later, the pilot took off to continue the trip. Upon takeoff, shortly after rotation, the pilot noted that the airplane seemed to be “mushy,” even though the engine was “screaming,” as if it were producing power. He stated that the airplane “seemed to be hanging from the propeller.” The pilot initiated a left turn to return to the runway and decided to level off. After leveling off, the tail of the airplane impacted trees and the airplane went straight down. The passenger got a glimpse at the instruments, and the airspeed indicator showed about “sixty” when the airplane hit the trees. A witness observed the airplane take off and climb to about 150 feet. He thought that the engine appeared to lose power, but it was still running. He saw the airplane turn to the left and appeared to stall. Examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal any pre-impact anomalies. One of the wooden propeller blades was shattered, consistent with rotation at impact. The wreckage was found amidst trees, nose down, consistent with a low inertia impact. It is likely that the pilot initiated a turn at too low an airspeed and the airplane stalled after takeoff. 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).

• — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot
• — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Airspeed-Not attained/maintained