# Accident 20031018031239A: Amtr FM2, Houston, TX, October 18, 2003

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: October 18, 2003, 18:17 local time
- Place: Houston, TX
- Airport: Ellington Field Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Go Round (Aborted VFR)
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 29.6122° N, 95.1647° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=29.6122&lon=-95.1647&mi=10
- Aircraft: N681S (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: AMTR FM2
- Reported engine: WRIGHT R1820*
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Pilot flight hours: 5,447 total, 60 in this make and model, 60 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW04LA010](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW04LA010) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20031018031239A

## Narrative

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

(-23) THE ATP RATED PILOT HAD COMPLETED AN AIR-TO-AIR PHOTO MISSION AFTER PARTICIPATING IN A LARGE AIRSHOW AND HAD REQUESTED A LOW PASS DOWN THE RUNWAY TO BE FOLLOWED BY A LANDING. SEVERAL EYEWITNESSES SAID THE FM-2 "WILDCAT" HAD DONE A RIGHT 360 TURN WHILE ON FINAL APPROACH TO ALLOW SPACING WITH A SLOWER AIRCRAFT AHEAD AND WAS BEGINNING A SECOND 360 TURN TO THE LEFT WHEN THE TOWER CONTROLLER ASKED IF HE COULD MAKE THE TURN TO THE RIGHT INSTEAD TO AVOID OTHER AIRSPACE AT HOU. ONE EYEWITNESS SAID THE WILDCAT'S DIAMETER OF TURN AT THAT TIME WAS APPROXIMATELY 1/4 MILE. AFTER THE PILOT REVERSED THE DIRECTION OF TURN FROM LEFT TO RIGHT (ACCORDING TO SEVERAL EYEWITNESSES) THE FM-2 BEGAN PITCHING NOSE UP, ROLLED TO THE RIGHT AND STALLED. EVIDENCE AT THE CRASH SITE SHOWS THE AIRCRAFT MISSED THE 32 FOOT POWER LINES THAT WERE ON A 40 DEGREE ANGLE FROM THE FIRST IMPACT SCAR AND THE MAIN WRECKAGE TRAVELED ONLY 40 FEET FROM THE INITIAL IMPACT CRATER. THERE WAS A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF GASOLINE AND OIL AT THE CRASH SITE, BUT THERE WAS NO FIRE. AT THE TIME OF IMPACT, THE LANDING GEAR WAS IN THE UP POSITION AND THE FLAPS WERE RETRACTED. THE PILOT SUSTAINED FATAL INJURIES AND THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED. (-23 AMENDMENT) AMENDED: ITEM 22 ON PAGE ONE, IS CHANGED FROM "AIRSHOW" TO "PERSONAL". ALTHOUGH N681S HAD EARLIER THAT SAME DAY BEEN PARTICIPATING IN THE "2003 WINGS OVER HOUSTON" AIRSHOW, AT THE TIME OF THIS AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT THE AIRSHOW WAS OFFICIALLY OVER AND CONTROL OF THE WAIVERED AIRSPACE HAD BEEN OFFICIALLY RETURNED TO ATC. SEVERAL OFFICIALS OF THE 2003 WINGS OVER HOUSTON EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE SAID THAT N681S WAS RETURNING FOR LANDING AFTER PARTICIPATING IN A "POST AIRSHOW" PHOTO FLIGHT.

## 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 FTW04LA010](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW04LA010), Oct 18, 2003: General Motors FM-2 (N681S), Houston, TX, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed resulting in an inadvertent stall/spin while maneuvering to land.

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.