Amateur-built HULA GIRL accident near Wellington, Colorado, July 3, 2010
On July 3, 2010 at about 6:00 pm local time, a amateur-built HULA GIRL (glider), registered N301TW, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Wellington, Colorado (Owl Canyon Gliderport airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A partial loss of engine power due to the inadequate design of the engine cowling.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 3, 2010 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Wellington, Colorado · Owl Canyon Gliderport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built HULA GIRL
- Registration
- N301TW · registry record · serial 001
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot, who is also the designer and builder of the experimental motorglider, was making his second flight after having completed a number of high-speed taxi tests. The pilot said that several months earlier, on his first flight in the motorglider, shortly after becoming airborne the engine experienced a partial loss of power and he landed immediately. On the accident flight, immediately after takeoff, the pusher-configuration engine again lost power from 6,500 rpm to approximately 4,300 rpm. The pilot was not able to climb and was able to maintain flight at only 100 feet above ground level. Approximately one mile from the airport the pilot attempted an off-field emergency landing and then “did an intentional ground loop” to avoid a fence he had not noticed before touchdown. With the motorglider then moving sideways, the tail impacted a small tree. The carbon-fiber tail boom fractured and separated just forward of the vertical fin, causing substantial damage to the motorglider. The solo pilot was not injured. The pilot reported that there was adequate fuel in the tank and previous testing showed there was adequate fuel flow to the engine. After the accident the pilot reported that that his design of the engine cowling needed to be modified and he thought that “an engine compartment pressure differential from outside air caused the carburetor float bowl to empty.”
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
What happened, in order
- Miscellaneous/other during prior to flight
- Loss of engine power (partial) during takeoff defining event
- Off-field or emergency landing during emergency descent
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during landing (landing roll)
- Aircraft structural failure during post (impact)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine (reciprocating) › (general) › Design
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 247 hours in all; 1 in this make and model; 200 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: June 27, 2010
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, February 27, 2010; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 825 lb
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 447 ULS (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 4CO2 Wellington CO at 6:00 pm
- Destination: 4CO2 Wellington CO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19R, 3,580 ft by 24 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 11 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.77 inHg
- Observation at 6:15 pm from FNL, 21 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.