- Date
- November 27, 2025, 15:10 local (21:10 UTC)
- Place
- Brazos, TX
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N957DKJust Highlander
- Defining event
- Maneuvering-low-alt flying: Low altitude operation/event
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 19, 2026
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA
- Case key
- 202079
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 clearance from power lines during low-level maneuvering along a river.
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
A witness reported that he was outside when he saw the accident airplane maneuvering about 30 to 50 ft above the ground along a river. He remarked that the airplane seemed low. The witness said that the engine sounded like it was operating normally and the airplane was not flying erratically. The witness saw the airplane bank and then it struck a powerline. There was a bright flash of light, the airplane disappeared from his view, and then he heard a loud bang. The witness went to the other side of his property and saw that the airplane was upside down on a sandbar along the river. He estimated that the powerline was about 40 to 45 ft above ground. The pilot was seriously injured, and the airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, wing struts, and engine mount. The investigator in charge made several attempts to obtain a statement from the pilot. At the time this report was written, the pilot had not provided a statement pertaining to the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N957DK
- Reported as
- Just Highlander
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- JA268-06-12
- Built
- 2015
- Engine
- Rotax 912ULS, 100 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Melcap LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Airport
- NA
- Equipment
- Unknown
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
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 76
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- BasicMed, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 0 total · 0 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 10° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 66 °F, dew point 34 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.36 inHg
- Observed at
- KCLL, 4 nm away
- METAR
- KCLL 272053Z 01006KT 10SM CLR 19/01 A3036
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on March 19, 2026, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.7 MB in all.