WPR26LA256

NTSB accident investigation · Canadair CF-5D · Mojave, CA · July 10, 2026

Accident · No injuriesClass 3 · LimitedPreliminary report
Date
July 10, 2026, 11:03 local (18:03 UTC)
Place
Mojave, CA
Injuries
2 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N845PSCanadair CF-5D
Defining event
Landing-landing roll: Fire/smoke (non-impact)
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Investigation ongoing
Investigation class
Class 3
NTSB office
Western Pacific Region
Parties
FAA-Van Nuys
Case key
203390

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

On this page

Preliminary report

What NTSB knew early in the investigation. It may change in the final report.

On July 10, 2026, about 1103 Pacific daylight time, a Canadair CF-5D, N845PS, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Mojave, California. The two pilots onboard were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight. The pilot reported that during the landing roll the left engine fire warning system initiated, which was followed by a right engine fire warning. He stated that he performed the emergency procedure and the airplane came to a stop on the runway, at which time both pilots egressed. A witness photographed the airplane in the airport’s traffic pattern prior to landing. A photograph showed the airplane trailing white vapor from the left side of the fuselage underneath the left wing and around the left engine exhaust. An airport surveillance video showed the airplane touchdown on the runway with white vapor trailing. The airplane continued to roll down the runway when the white vapor stopped and the airplane caught fire. The airplane came to a stop on the runway where the fire continued to burn near the empennage. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and empennage. The airplane was relocated to a hangar for further examination.

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.

Aircraft

Registration
N845PS
Reported as
Canadair CF-5D
Category
Airplane
Serial number
116845
Built
1966
Airframe hours
4,662.3
Damage
Substantial damage
Fire
Fire at unknown time
Flight
Business · Part 91
Airworthiness certificate
Special, Experimental (Special)
Last inspection
Continuous airworthiness · June 26, 2026
Destination
Same as departure
Airport
MHV · Mojave Air and Space Port, runway 30, 12,503 × 200 ft, asphalt
Equipment
ADS-B, Angle of attack indicator, Heads up display

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.

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
300° at 10 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Temperature
97 °F, dew point 37 °F
Altimeter
29.92 inHg
Icing
Unknown
Turbulence
Unknown
Observed at
KMHV
METAR
METAR KMHV 101755Z AUTO 30010KT 240V330 10SM FEW360 36/03 A2992 RMK AO2 T03600033 10360 20252 53003=