Lebanon Airport: Lebanon, Oregon

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According to the pilot, when he began his departure roll, he had a clear view of the unlighted 2,100-foot-long by 20-foot-wide asphalt paved runway. Illumination was provided by street lights on parallel streets and the airplane's lights. Shortly after the takeoff roll began, the pilot "realized he could no longer see the runway edges." As soon as he made this realization, he felt the left main tire start to drag in the muddy ground next to the runway. He applied hard right rudder in an unsuccessful attempt to bring the left main tire back onto the pavement. He then realized that all of the wheels were off the pavement, pulled back on the yoke to keep the nose wheel up, and reduced power to abort the takeoff. After a "very short pause," he felt "the front of the plane dig in," and the airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted. (Sweet Home)

About 100 feet into the landing roll of the intended full-stop landing, the aircraft veered sharply to the right, and the pilot tried to correct back to the left. As he did so, the aircraft departed the left side of the runway, and impacted the Visual Approach Slope Indicator (VASI) standard, and then slid into a ditch. The impact with the VASI resulted in substantial damage to the airframe. A post accident inspection of the aircraft did not reveal any anomalies in the flight controls, nose wheel steering linkage, or wheel braking system.
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According to the pilot, during takeoff, the experimental airplane's Volkswagen engine lost power. During the ensuing forced landing on a road, the airplane struck a vehicle. The fuselage and wings of the airplane sustained structural damage.

On August 29, 2009, about 0805 Pacific daylight time, a Six-Chuter American Spirit, N9184F, collided with a residential power line and crashed on short final approach to an open field near Brownsville, Oregon. The experimental powered parachute was owned and operated by the sport pilot, and it was substantially damaged. The pilot was seriously injured, and the passenger received minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the personal flight, and no flight plan had been filed. The flight was performed under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The pilot initiated the flight from his residence in Sweet Home, Oregon, at an undetermined time.

The accident occurred during a fly-in sponsored by the Northwest Powered Parachute Coalition, Chapter 127 EAA, according to its on-scene representative. About the time of the accident, an estimated 20 to 30 other aircraft were flying in the vicinity of the designated landing site, which was an open field.

The representative reported that the pilot flew a low final approach path and was proceeding in an easterly direction toward the sun. The pilot's powered parachute collided with the top power line, which was not marked. The impact site was about 50 feet above ground level. After the collision, the pilot lost control of his powered parachute. The parachute's fuselage crashed into the field and came to rest in an upright attitude. Updated on Sep 9 2009 3:11PM