Amateur-built CHRISTAVIA accident near Lancaster, South Carolina, June 22, 2019
On June 22, 2019 at about 11:10 am local time, a 2013 amateur-built CHRISTAVIA, registered N222PN, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Lancaster, South Carolina (Lancaster Cnty-Mc Whirter Fld airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's distraction, which resulted in his failure to maintain adequate altitude and airspeed and a subsequent impact with terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 22, 2019 · about 11:10 am local time · cases in 2019
- Place
- Lancaster, South Carolina · Lancaster Cnty-Mc Whirter Fld · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built CHRISTAVIA 1, built 2013
- Registration
- N222PN · registry record · serial 614
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said he became distracted and the airplane’s altitude and airspeed decreased too much to land at the airport, so he attempted an off-field landing and impacted terrain. Postaccident examination revealed no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operations.
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
- Off-field or emergency landing during approach (VFR pattern final)
- Collision during takeoff/land during landing defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Identification/recognition › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Altitude › Not attained/maintained
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Airspeed › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Task monitoring/vigilance › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Attention › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,300 hours in all; 200 in this make and model
- Last flight review: June 29, 2017
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: frt
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: condition inspection, September 28, 2018
- Maximum gross weight: 1,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental A-65 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LKR Lancaster SC at 10:30 am
- Destination: LKR Lancaster SC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 6,004 ft by 101 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 8 knots, gusting 20
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 3002°F (1650°C)
- Observation at 11:15 am from LKR, 25 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 3 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photo 1 – View of the right front of N222PN as it sits in an open field 2000 yards short of runway 24 at Lancaster County-Mc Whirter Field (LKR), Lancaster, South Carolina.
Photo 2 – Front view of N222PN, a Christavia Mk I.
Photo 3 - Left side of N222PN. The pilot said he became distracted and got too low and too slow. When he realized he could not make the airport, he made an off-field landing.The NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on September 6, 2019. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | E-mail from FAA Inspector | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 2 | Report Photos | PDF, 3 pages · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N222PN on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Continental A-65 33 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Lancaster County-Mc Whirter Field · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in South Carolina 1,036 since 1982 · 173 in the last ten years
- South Carolina 3,112 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CEN19TA180.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.