Amateur-built O&O accident near Stevenson, Alabama, April 27, 1995
On April 27, 1995 at about 5:10 pm local time, a amateur-built O&O, registered N41SW, was destroyed in an accident near Stevenson, Alabama. It was a personal flight 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
AILERON-WING FLUTTER INDUCED BY SEPARATION AT THE TRAILING EDGE OF AN UNBONDED PORTION OF WING FABRIC AT AN AILERON WING STATION. THE DEBONDING OF THE WING FABRIC WAS A RESULT OF IMPROPER INSTALLATION.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 27, 1995 · about 5:10 pm local time
- Place
- Stevenson, Alabama · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built O&O
- Registration
- N41SW · registry record · serial 13
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
REPORTS FROM GROUND WITNESSES, NONE OF WHOM ACTUALLY SAW THE AIRPLANE, VARIED FROM HEARING A HIGH REVVING ENGINE TO AN EXPLOSION. EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED THAT THE AIRPLANE EXPERIENCED AN IN-FLIGHT BREAKUP. DAMAGE AND STRUCTURAL DEFORMATION WAS INDICATIVE OF AILERON-WING FLUTTER. WING FABRIC DOPE WAS DISTRESSED OR MISSING ON THE AFT INBOARD PORTION OF THE LEFT WING UPPER SURFACE AND ALONG THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF THE TOP OF THE MAIN SPAR. LARGE AREAS OF DOPE WERE ALSO MISSING FROM THE LEFT WING UNDERSURFACE. THE ENTIRE FABRIC COVERING ON THE UPPER AND LOWER SURFACES OF THE RIGHT WING HAD DELAMINATED FROM THE WING PLYWOOD SKIN. THE DOPED FINISH WAS SEVERELY DISTRESSED AND MOTTLED. THE FABRIC COVERING HAD NOT BEEN INSTALLED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE POLY-FIBER COVERING AND PAINT MANUAL; THE PLYWOOD WAS NOT TREATED WITH THE POLY-BRUSH COMPOUND.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 16,995 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 208 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 21, 1995; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,850 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470J (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FDO4 Ocala FL at 2:30 pm
- Destination: OSH Oshkosh WI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 15 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; scat at 9,500 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:00 pm from CHA, 31 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.