LAX01LA244 · Levitsky BD-5T

During a low altitude erratic flight, the airplane dropped rapidly until it hit the shoulder of a freeway and burst into flames. The pilot had been flying the airplane for several months since he completed building it. He had taken off and was several miles from his home airport. Witnesses observed the airplane about 125 feet above ground level, and the whole airplane weaved up and down as well as left and right. The engine was loud and high-pitched, but the witnesses didn't think that the airplane was going very fast. They did not observe any smoke, flames, or pieces falling from the airplane. As the airplane flew over a highway, it banked hard to the right and lost altitude. The airplane turned parallel to the freeway, and the erratic movement increased. The terrain sloped down at this point, and the airplane continued downhill parallel to the slope. The airplane cleared power lines, but then dropped rapidly until it hit the shoulder of the freeway. The engine sounded like it was running until the airplane cleared the power lines, and then the engine sound died. The kit manufacturer reported that the pilot had been in contact with them while he constructed the airplane. He told them that his initial flights occurred in early May 2001. The flights went well, and he was happy with the airplane's performance. He did slow flight and landings on the first 2-hour flight. He moved the airplane to Cameron Park, but damaged the tailskid, landing gear, and prop when the control stick grip came off during the landing flare. The pilot repaired the airplane, and the manufacturer disassembled and inspected the propeller hub. The manufacturer replaced the actuating cam guide pins as a precaution. Investigators were unable to detect any anomalies during examination of the wreckage that could account for the accident.

Verbatim NTSB analysis and probable cause from the NTSB dataset