# Accident 19980712016371A: Amtr CLASSICIV, Traer, IA, July 12, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 12, 1998, 10:03 local time
- Place: Traer, IA
- Airport: Traer Municipal Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Collision: Midair collision, first aircraft
- Phase of flight: Climb
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 42.1904° N, 92.4605° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.1904&lon=-92.4605&mi=10
- Aircraft: N494S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N494S-2000-05-11) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Stubbe Kenneth D KITFOX CLASSIC IV (registry code 056049S, https://openairdocs.org/model/stubbe-kenneth-d-kitfox-classic-iv) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: AMTR CLASSICIV
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 282 total, 107 in this make and model, 41 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CHI98FA244](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98FA244) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980712016371A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) AIRCRAFT DEPARTED TRAER, IOWA AIRPORT ON RUNWAY 17. WITNESSES STATED THAT AFTER APPROXIMATELY 60-100 FEET OF ALTITUDE, ENGINE STARTED TO RUN ROUGH. AIRCRAFT STARTED A LEFT TURN, AND THEN MADE A STEEP RIGHT TURN BACK TO THE RUNWAY WHEN THE NOSE WENT DOWN AND STRUCK AN AIRCRAFT ON THE GROUND. THE AIRCRAFT ON THE GROUND WAS TAXIING TO THE TIE DOWN AREA ON THE TRAER AIRPORT. POST CRASH FIRE RESULTED DESTROYING THIS AIRCRAFT. (.4) THE EXPERIMENTAL KITFOX HAD DEPARTED AND ACCORDING TO A WITNESS, 'THE KITFOX WAS SLOW AND HAD A DEFINITE NOSE-UP PITCH.  MY VERY FIRST THOUGHT WHEN I SAW THE KITFOX WAS THAT THE PILOT WAS, FOR SOME REASON, DEMONSTRATING SLOW FLIGHT.  BUT ALMOST AS QUICKLY, I RECOGNIZED AN IMPENDING STALL WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN.  THE WINGS OF THE KITFOX WERE ROCKING BACK AND FORTH AND THE NOSE WAS YAWING.  THE KITFOX THEN STALLED AND COLLIDED WITH THE BT-13 HITTING THE BT-13 IN THE FRONT COCKPIT AREA AND RIGHT WING BEFORE IMPACTING THE GROUND. ... THE KITFOX CAME TO REST INVERTED AND BURST INTO FLAMES IMMEDIATELY AFTER IMPACT.'  ACCORDING TO THE PILOT OF THE BT-13, 'I WAS BEING DIRECTED BY [GROUND PERSONNEL] WHO WAS ON THE GROUND.  THE KIT FOX HAD DEPARTED                   ON RUNWAY 17 AND STALLED OVERHEAD AT 50-65 FEET ANS STUCK MY AIRPLANE. MY PROP SLASHED THROUGH THE WRECKAGE OF THE AIRPLANE AND THEN SLAMMED THE KIT FOX TO THE GROUND WHERE IT EXPLODED.'

## Other aircraft in the event

- N70035, Cvac BT15: [Accident 19980712016372A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980712016372A)

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB CHI98FA244](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI98FA244), Jul 12, 1998: Stubbe-Kitfox Classic (N494S), Traer, IA, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: the failure of the pilot of the Kitfox to maintain flying speed (Vs).

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.