This plane was bought partially completed last year and was finished just a
couple of hangars down from me at French Valley Airport (F70). I just
spoke to the owner earlier this week. I only knew his first name, which
was Leroy. He'd just finished putting the engine back on the plane after
discovering some serious cracks in his motor mount during phase one testing
last month. The cracks were so bad he bought a new mount rather than fix
the old one.
I wasn't at the airport when the crash occurred, but from what I've been told,
the owner was flying a local hop and during his turn from base to final,
he overshot the centerline and in his effort to pull the plane back to it, he
entered an accellerated stall. The plane flipped on it's back and went
nose first into a field killing him and his passenger instantly. Though
I'm not sure, it sounds like the passenger was a guy who had
helped Leroy with some of the wiring in the plane. If that's
who it was, he left a wife and three kids. Leroy was in his 60's and his
kids are all grown. If I hear any newer news, I'll post it.