<< >> NASA ASRS Report 1220805, October 2014

Zenair pilot reports pilot entry door opening just after rotation. On downwind during return to the airport the leg door departs the aircraft. A normal landing ensues.

Attributes
ACN	1220805
Time
Date	201410
Local Time Of Day	0601-1200
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	Small Aircraft Low Wing 1 Eng Fixed Gear
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Takeoff
Route In Use	None
Flight Plan	VFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Exterior Pax/Crew Door
Person 1
Function	Captain Pilot Flying Single Pilot
Qualification	Flight Crew Private
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 32 Flight Crew Total 339.6 Flight Crew Type 195.7
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe

Narrative:

Conducted pre-flight and pre-takeoff checklist. Item to check door latch is listed and verified twice and confirmed by passenger. Just after rotation; the pilots' entry door opened. Stabilized airspeed and climb; then notified tower of situation. Tower cleared left traffic to return to runway. Proceeded upwind; crosswind and downwind to set up approach to land. On downwind leg door failed and liberated from aircraft and was lost in the swamp/lake area south of the airport. Landed without incident. Called tower later to let them know the door was not lost on the airport operations area. Search for door on ground was unsuccessful.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Zenair pilot reports pilot entry door opening just after rotation. On downwind during return to the airport the leg door departs the aircraft. A normal landing ensues.

Narrative: Conducted pre-flight and pre-takeoff checklist. Item to check door latch is listed and verified twice and confirmed by passenger. Just after rotation; the pilots' entry door opened. Stabilized airspeed and climb; then notified tower of situation. Tower cleared left traffic to return to runway. Proceeded upwind; crosswind and downwind to set up approach to land. On downwind leg door failed and liberated from aircraft and was lost in the swamp/lake area south of the airport. Landed without incident. Called tower later to let them know the door was not lost on the airport operations area. Search for door on ground was unsuccessful.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.