- Date
- February 21, 1988, 17:00 local (23:00 UTC)
- Place
- Canyon Lake, TX
- Injuries
- 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N5539ZHodges Condor III +2
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 10, 1989
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880221033719A
- Case key
- 22511
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 homebuilt airplane was being flown by the new owner and his son. After two takeoffs and landings, the airplane was 5O feet in the air when the engine quit. The pilot stated in his report, 'we suspect a kill switch was inadvertently touched and this was cause of untimely loss of power.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5539Z
- Reported as
- Hodges Condor III +2 (CONDOR III)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 8312732
- Airframe hours
- 53
- Engine
- Kawasaki TA-440O, 40 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- John Barnett
- Registered owner
- William H. Hodges
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Unknown · February 21, 1988 · 1 hours before
- Airport
- runway 20, 1,200 × ft, grass/turf
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
- 39
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 920 total · 3 in this make and model · 800 as pilot in command · 12 in the last 90 days · 12 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 25 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SAT, 20 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.