Amateur-built RV8 accident near Columbus, Mississippi, February 15, 2020
On February 15, 2020 at about 1:00 pm local time, a amateur-built RV8, registered N7736T, was destroyed in an accident during prior to flight near Columbus, Mississippi (Columbus-Lowndes County 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 inadvertent engine start of the unoccupied airplane, which resulted in it moving forward and impacting a hangar and an electrical box.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 15, 2020 · about 1:00 pm local time
- Place
- Columbus, Mississippi · Columbus-Lowndes County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RV8 A
- Registration
- N7736T · no longer on the register · serial 81302
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he conducted the preflight and that, during the start sequence, the engine's starter would not engage. He turned off the switches, set the parking brake, and exited the cockpit. He rotated the engine by turning the propeller slowly by hand so that the starter would engage. The engine started unexpectedly, and the airplane moved forward. The airplane impacted a hangar and an electrical transformer box, and a postimpact fire ensured, which consumed the airplane and prevented examination of the cockpit, brakes, or electrical system.
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
- Ground handling event during prior to flight
- Ground collision during prior to flight defining event
- Fire/smoke (post-impact)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Electrical power system › Battery/charger › Not specified
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Airport structure › Effect on operation
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › (general) › Effect on equipment
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › (general) › (general) › Unintentional use/operation
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,300 hours in all; 120 in this make and model; 11 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 2,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: none
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 400 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, April 30, 2019
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: UBS Columbus MS
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 28°F (-2°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.44 inHg
- Observation at 12:56 pm from KGTR, 9 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on February 28, 2020. 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 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 11 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Photo | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
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.