- Date
- August 27, 2004, 15:30 local (20:30 UTC)
- Place
- Houston, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N30KRLancair 320
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 3, 2004
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20040827023309A
- Case key
- 59996
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 premature lift-off before attaining adequate airspeed resulting in a stall and collision with the ground.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The 1,070-hour pilot reported that during takeoff on Runway 9 (a 5,000-foot long and 100-foot wide asphalt runway) the airplane became airborne, settled back onto the runway, exited the runway, before impacting a culvert at an intersecting taxiway. The pilot added that as the airplane became airborne, the "takeoff pitch was too steep" and he could not keep the airplane straight with rudder. The pilot reported that at the time of the accident, the wind was from the southeast at 15 knots.
Factual narrative
On August 27, 2004, approximately 1530 central daylight time, an amateur-built Lancair 320 single-engine airplane, N30KR, registered and operated by a private individual, sustained substantial damage when it impacted terrain following a loss of control during takeoff from the Houston Southwest Airport (AXH) near Houston, Texas. The commercial pilot and his passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The cross-country flight was destined for the Southeast Texas Regional Airport near Beaumont, Texas.
The 1,070-hour pilot reported in the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2) that during takeoff from Runway 9 (a 5,000-foot long and 100-foot wide asphalt runway) the airplane became airborne at an airspeed of approximately 90 knots. The pilot added that when the airplane was approximately 3 feet above the ground, the "takeoff pitch was too steep," and the airplane settled back onto the runway drifting left of the runway centerline. Subsequently, the airplane exited the left side of the runway and impacted a culvert at an intersecting taxiway before coming to rest in an upright position.
Examination of the airplane by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector, who responded to the site of the accident, revealed that the nose wheel was folded under the engine. Both wings and the bottom side of the fuselage sustained structural damage. The engine firewall was also bent.
At 1453, the automated weather observing system at the Sugar Land Regional Airport, located approximately 11 nautical miles northwest of AXH, reported wind from 140 degrees at 9 knots, visibility 10 statute mile, scattered clouds at 4,400, temperature 91 degrees Fahrenheit, dew point 77 degrees Fahrenheit, and an altimeter setting of 29.97 inches of Mercury.
The pilot reported that at the time of the accident, the wind was from the southeast at 15 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N30KR
- Reported as
- Lancair 320
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 006
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-320-DIB, 190 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Matthew R Koontz
- Registered owner
- Adam Courville
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Departed
- AXH · Houston, TX
- Destination
- BPT · Beaumont, TX
- Airport
- AXH · Houston Southwest Airport, runway 9, 5,000 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
- 35
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- August 8, 2004
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,070 total · 1,048 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 140° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F, dew point 77 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.96 inHg
- Observed at
- SGR, 11 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.