Swearingen SX-300 accident near Wilmington, Ohio, January 9, 1989
On January 9, 1989 at about 2:01 pm local time, a Swearingen SX-300, registered N6Y, was destroyed in an accident near Wilmington, Ohio. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FATIGUE AND RESULTING FAILURE OF THE RIGHT WING'S LOWER ATTACHMENT FITTING AND INADEQUATE QUALITY CONTROL BY THE SWEARINGEN SX-300 PRODUCTION/DESIGN PERSONNEL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 9, 1989 · about 2:01 pm local time
- Place
- Wilmington, Ohio · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Swearingen SX-300
- Registration
- N6Y · registry record · serial 001
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THIS SX-300 (SA-29) WAS A PROOF-OF-CONCEPT ACFT BEING DEMONSTRATED FOR THE USAF AT WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB. THE ACFT WAS CLEARED TO RESTRICTED AREA R5503 AT 8000 FT FOR A DEMONSTRATION. RADIO COMMUNICATIONS WITH INDIANAPOLIS ARTCC WERE ROUTINE; THERE WERE NO DISTRESS TRANSMISSIONS. ABOUT 7 MINUTES AFTER TAKEOFF THE ACFT WAS INVOLVED IN AN INFLIGHT BREAKUP. THE WRECKAGE PATH WAS ABOUT 1 MILE IN LENGTH WITH THE RT WING 3000 FEET FROM THE MAIN WRECKAGE. THE RT WING LOWER ATTACHMENT FITTING EXHIBITED A FATIGUE AREA WHICH PROGRESSED TO FAILURE FROM A WELD NUGGET NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF TWO WELD BEADS. PRE-EXISTING CRACKS WERE ALSO PRESENT IN THE LUG WELD AREA OF THE LEFT WING UPPER AND LOWER ATTACH- MENT FITTINGS. THE ACFT HAD BEEN IN SVC 571 HRS. IT WAS CERTIFIED AS AN EXPERIMENTAL CATEGORY EXHIBITION ACFT. THE DESIGNER HAD STATIC LOAD TESTED THE WINGS TO 6 G'S & SUSPECTED THE ACFT HAD BEEN SUBJECTED TO FLT LOADS APCHG 6 G'S. THE PLT TOLD AN ACQUAINTANCE THAT HE HAD ROUTINELY EXCEEDED THE 'RED LINE' BY 85 MPH.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 7,754 hours in all; 145 in this make and model; 30 in the last 90 days; 22 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 571 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 24, 1988; 87 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-L1C5 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: FFO Dayton OH at 1:56 pm
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 12,000 ft; scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:55 pm from FFO, 18 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.