Final
None
Jan 19, 2021
N5880L accident at Leesburg, VA
American AA5 — Flight control sys malf/fail at JYO (Leesburg, VA)
DateJan 19, 2021
Tail numberN5880L
AircraftAmerican AA5 · Grumman AA-5 Tiger/Cheetah · AA5
LocationJYO — Leesburg, VA
Phase of flightEnroute
OperationPart 91 Instructional
InjuriesNone
NTSB caseERA21LA106
Probable cause
The weakened structure of the left horizontal stabilizer, which resulted in elevator flutter and subsequent partial separation of the left elevator in flight. Contributing to the accident were the lack of elevator authority while landing due to the damaged left elevator and the inadequate inspection of the airplane, which failed to detect the disbonding of the left horizontal stabilizer.
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