Amateur-built Mini Mustang accident near Mullins, South Carolina, April 17, 2005
On April 17, 2005 at about 7:05 pm local time, a amateur-built Mini Mustang, registered N416A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mullins, South Carolina. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate visual lookout and the pilot's failure to maintain clearance from trees while maneuvering.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 17, 2005 · about 7:05 pm local time
- Place
- Mullins, South Carolina · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Mini Mustang
- Registration
- N416A · no longer on the register · serial 581
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses stated that they were watching the pilot perform an aerobatic maneuver described to be a "hammerhead stall." The airplane turned downwind then to base in what the witnesses said was a "3G turn to final approach." The airplane then proceeded to the show line and sank into some trees to the right of the spectators. The airplane then exited the tree line inverted and collided with the ground and burst into flames. The post-accident examination of the airplane failed to disclose a mechanical malfunction or component failure.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 5,300 hours in all; 110 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 626 hours
- Maximum gross weight: 1,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Avco Lycoming 0-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MAO Mullins SC at 6:30 pm
- Destination: MAO
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.29 inHg
- Observation at 2:53 pm from FLO
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.