RV14A - aircraft NOT down - Final Report - N5875G

[A2022]

well, it's nice to know that an RV14 can survive a turkey buzzard (very large bird) strike on the vertical stab at 105 kts and continue the approach inbound and make a successful landing. hey, when you are in the pattern, slow down and watch for these types of birds.

https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/ ... 193365/pdf

The pilot of the personal flight stated that during a two-mile final for landing at the destination airport, he encountered a group of four large birds. He pitched the airplane down to avoid striking one of the birds, but he did not have time to avoid them. The airplane struck one of the birds at an airspeed of 105 kts and at an altitude of 880 ft mean sea level. The bird, identified as a black vulture, remained draped around the vertical stabilizer, and there was some loss of stability about the vertical axis. The pilot still had positive control of the airplane, and he declared an emergency landing without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the vertical stabilizer.