FAA Grounds Entire Elixir Aircraft Fleet After Fatal Incident in France
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has issued an emergency airworthiness directive (AD) grounding all Elixir Aircraft Model Elixir airplanes in the United States. This action follows a fatal production test flight accident at Rochefort-Saint-Agnant airfield in France on October 1, 2026. Tragically, both factory test pilots aboard lost their lives when the aircraft’s left wing flap detached during its final turn onto Runway 12, resulting in a loss of control.
The FAA’s directive, published on October 13 and effective from October 14, 2026, prohibits further flight of all Elixir airplanes until FAA-approved inspection or corrective actions have been completed. This restriction echoes an earlier emergency grounding issued by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on October 2, which suspended the entire global Elixir fleet.
Approximately three U.S.-registered Elixir aircraft are primarily affected by this directive. However, the directive extends to all registered examples, regardless of the country of registration.
The Elixir is a French-built, two-seat, single-engine trainer manufactured by Elixir Aircraft in La Rochelle, France. The company had only recently begun expanding deliveries into the U.S. flight training market after receiving its FAA type certificate. French accident investigators at the BEA confirmed the left flap separated from aircraft registration F-WZAG during the accident sequence.
The FAA has described this action as an interim measure, noting that additional requirements may follow as the investigation progresses. Public comments on the directive are due by November 27, 2026.
Source: AVweb – FAA Grounds Elixir Aircraft Following Fatal Accident