- Date
- October 1, 1998, 12:30 local (17:30 UTC)
- Place
- Tomball, TX
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N527SSDiamond Aircraft Industries DA 20-A1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 20, 2000
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19981001042209A
- Case key
- 45557
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 follow the checklist and secure the canopy, which resulted in the canopy separating from the airplane during takeoff initial climb. A factor was the pilot's failure to detect the canopy warning light prior to takeoff.
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
During takeoff, at about 400 feet, the canopy separated from the airplane. The pilot turned the airplane back towards the airport and landed without further incident. The pilot reported that he did not explain to the passenger that the right side of the canopy needed to be latched before takeoff. The pilot also reported that he did not observe the canopy warning light during taxi to the runway, nor did he complete the 'Canopy-Secure' portion of the pre-takeoff checklist.
Factual narrative
On October 1, 1998, at 1230 central daylight time, a Diamond Aircraft Industries DA 20-A1 single-engine airplane, N527SS, was substantially damaged when the canopy separated during takeoff from David Wayne Hooks Memorial Airport near Tomball, Texas. The private pilot and his passenger were not injured. The airplane was registered to MDFC Equipment Leasing Corporation of Long Beach, California, and operated by Flight Academy International of Spring, Texas. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight, which was originating at the time of the accident.
According to the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1/2, the pilot did not explain to the passenger that the right side of the canopy needed to be latched before takeoff. The pilot stated that he did not observe the canopy warning light during taxi to the runway, nor did he complete the "Canopy-Secure" portion of the pre-takeoff checklist. The pilot also stated that after takeoff from runway 17L, at about 400 feet, he heard a "rapid-sounding noise for several repetitions, followed by the canopy disengaging itself from the fuselage."
Following the separation of the canopy, the pilot's headset was lost from the "burst of wind." As a result, tower communication was not possible. The pilot turned the aircraft back towards the airport and landed on runway 35L "without further damage to [the] aircraft."
The canopy was recovered approximately 1/4 mile south of the localizer antennas for runway 17R.
According to the FAA inspector, the main structural spar behind the cockpit, to which the canopy was attached, sustained damage.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N527SS
- Reported as
- Diamond Aircraft Industries DA 20-A1
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 10090
- Airframe hours
- 680
- Engine
- Rotax 912/F3, 80 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Flight Academy International
- Registered owner
- Mdfc Equipment Leasing Corp.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 25, 1998 · 32 hours before
- Departed
- DWH
- Destination
- CLL · College Station, TX
- Airport
- DWH · David Wayne Hooks Airport, runway 35L, 3,997 × 35 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
- 28
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 14 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 88 °F, dew point 72 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.