Ercoupe 415 accident near Maricopa, Arizona, September 10, 2019

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

During the takeoff roll for the instructional flight, the student pilot allowed the airplane to veer left of centerline multiple times, but the flight instructor corrected the airplane’s track back to runway centerline with steering control inputs. As the airplane lifted off the ground, the student pilot abruptly pitched the airplane’s nose up, and the airplane began to bank to the left. The flight instructor stated twice that he had the flight controls; however, the student pilot’s continued inputs prevented the flight instructor from gaining control of the airplane. Afterward, the airplane stalled; the student pilot relinquished airplane control to the flight instructor; and the airplane entered a spin and collided with the roof of a two-story airport building, which caused substantial damage to the airplane and serious injuries to the airplane occupants. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed no preexisting malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. It is likely that full operation of the elevator was not possible while the flight instructor was trying to manipulate the controls and the student pilot was not relinquishing the controls, which led to the roll to the left and the subsequent exceedance of the airplane’s critical angle of attack. Even though the student pilot was at the controls before and at the time of the stall, the flight instructor had the ultimate responsibility for the safety of the flight, especially given that the accident flight was only the student’s second time receiving instruction in the accident airplane.

The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.