- Date
- April 6, 2025, 17:05 local (22:05 UTC)
- Place
- Fairbury, NE
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N9926CSilvaire 8F
- Defining event
- Landing-landing roll: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20250406003809A
- Case key
- 199986
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control while landing and the flight instructors delayed remedial action.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The flight instructor reported that the pilot receiving instruction performed a wheel landing on a runway with a crosswind. The landing was normal until the tail came down. The nose of the airplane went to the left and then back to the right. The flight instructor applied full left rudder, but the airplane continued to the right. The pilot receiving instruction applied full left break; however, the airplane continued to the right, exited the runway, and came to rest in a drainage ditch. The left main landing gear folded underneath the airplane and punctured the airplane floor which resulted in substantial damage to the lower fuselage. Both the pilot receiving instruction and the flight instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. At the time of the accident, the pilot was landing the airplane on runway 17. The flight instructor reported that the wind was out of the south southwest at 10 kts.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N9926C
- Reported as
- Silvaire 8F
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- S-30
- Built
- 1959
- Airframe hours
- 1,832
- Engine
- Continental C90-12F, 90 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 14, 2024
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- FBY · Fairbury Municipal, runway 17, 3,700 × 75 ft, concrete
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew · 2
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 67
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Waiver time limited special
- Last flight review
- December 1, 2024
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 8,629 total · 8 in this make and model · 8,366 as pilot in command · 17 in the last 90 days · 9 in the last 30 days
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 43
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- June 1, 2024
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 123 total · 8 in this make and model · 79 as pilot in command · 13 in the last 90 days · 12 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 57 °F, dew point 19 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.07 inHg
- Observed at
- KBIE, 20 nm away
- METAR
- KBIE 062155Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 14/M07 A3007
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 11, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.5 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N9926C · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.