Amateur-built RANS S-6ES accident near Mullen, Nebraska, September 10, 2013
On September 10, 2013 at about 12:00 pm local time, a amateur-built RANS S-6ES, registered N611WE, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Mullen, Nebraska (Private Airstrip 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
The gopher holes and soft terrain the airplane encountered, which resulted in the airplane nosing over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 10, 2013 · about 12:00 pm local time
- Place
- Mullen, Nebraska · Private Airstrip · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RANS S-6ES
- Registration
- N611WE · registry record · serial 08051684
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot landed the airplane at a private airstrip where the airplane contacted gopher mounds and soft ground. The nose landing gear collapsed, the airplane nosed over, and it sustained substantial empennage damage. The pilot said that there were no airplane mechanical malfunctions.
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
- Nose over/nose down during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Operating environment › Airport facilities/design › Runway/landing area condition › Contributed to outcome
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 471.5 hours in all; 422 in this make and model; 47 in the last 90 days; 19 in the last 30 days; 427 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 19, 2013
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 412 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, May 18, 2013
- Maximum gross weight: 1,100 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912UL (piston); 412 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BUB Burwell NE at 11:30 pm
- Destination: PVT Mullen NE
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 11:55 pm from KTIF, 22 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.