- Date
- May 15, 2020, 18:45 local (23:45 UTC)
- Place
- Guntersville, AL
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N990HPAviat A1B
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Landing gear not configured
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20200515006239A
- Case key
- 101297
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 retract the amphibious airplane's landing gear wheels prior to a water landing, which resulted in a nose over.
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 pilot of the amphibious float equipped airplane reported that while landing on the water, he experienced a very hard, violent landing with a nose down pitch attitude and the airplane nosed over. He further reported that, prior to the landing on the water, he had previously departed a land-based airport and while on final approach to the lake for landing, he was distracted by a boat in the area and did not verify that the landing gear was retracted for a water landing. The airplane sustained substantial damage to both wings and right-wing lift struts. The pilot also reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N990HP
- Reported as
- Aviat A1B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2109
- Built
- 2000
- Airframe hours
- 1,854.8
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A1P, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 26, 2019 · 99 hours before
- Departed
- 8A1 · Guntersville, AL
- Destination
- HSV · Huntsville, AL
- Equipment
- Electronic flight bag or handheld device, ADS-B, Handheld GPS
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
- 31
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land, Multi-engine sea, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter, Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 21, 2020
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 1,749 total · 149 in this make and model · 1,209 as pilot in command · 65 in the last 90 days · 24 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 180° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- 4A6, 10 nm away
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 29, 2020, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 976 KB 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.