Amateur-built LANCAIR IV accident near Gastonia, North Carolina, May 25, 1995
On May 25, 1995 at about 8:51 pm local time, a amateur-built LANCAIR IV, registered N453A, was destroyed in an accident near Gastonia, North Carolina. 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
An in-flight fire of undetermined origin that resulted in a loss of control and impact with the ground.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 25, 1995 · about 8:51 pm local time
- Place
- Gastonia, North Carolina · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built LANCAIR IV
- Registration
- N453A · no longer on the register · serial 172
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WITNESSES OBSERVED THE AIRPLANE, IN-FLIGHT, WITH SMOKE AND FIRE TRAILING ALONG THE BELLY OF THE AIRPLANE. THE FLAMES AND SMOKE APPEARED TO COME FROM THE AFT END OF THE ENGINE COWL. SOOT TRAILS WERE FOUND, EXTERNALLY, ON THE CABIN DOOR AND THE RUDDER, THAT WERE ALIGNED WITH AERODYNAMIC AIR FLOW. THERE WAS HEAT DAMAGE TO INTERIOR COMPONENTS, IN THE AREA OF THE FIRE WALL & NOSE GEAR WELL. THE GREATEST FIRE DAMAGE WAS TO THE NOSE WHEEL, THE NOSE WHEEL WELL, AND THE SURROUNDING AREA. IMPACT AND GROUND FIRE DAMAGE PRECLUDED A DETERMINATION OF THE FIRE INITIATION POINT AND THE IGNITION SOURCE.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 7,547 hours in all; 4,899 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 14 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, April 14, 1995; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-550-B1B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 0A6 NC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 330° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from CLT, 14 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.