Amateur-built SPORTCRUISER accident near Gober, Texas, August 14, 2020
On August 14, 2020 at about 12:56 pm local time, a 2016 amateur-built SPORTCRUISER, registered N467SC, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Gober, Texas. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot’s improper recovery from a power-off stall. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor’s failure to properly monitor the student pilot during the stall recovery.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 14, 2020 · about 12:56 pm local time
- Place
- Gober, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SPORTCRUISER No Series, built 2016
- Registration
- N467SC · no longer on the register · serial C0571
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was performing a power-off stall and recovery maneuver. The flight instructor was instructing the student through the maneuver as he was performing it. The student performed the maneuver steps correctly until the stall occurred. During the recovery, the student pitched the airplane’s nose down into a near vertical attitude and applied full power instead of pitching the airplane 10o nose down which was the proper recovery attitude, and the airplane entered an inverted spin. The flight instructor reported that she was caught off guard by the student’s actions during the recovery and immediately took control of the airplane. She attempted to recover the airplane from the spin but was unable to regain airplane control. The instructor then deployed the airframe parachute, and the airplane landed in an open field. Surface wind caught the parachute, causing the airplane to be dragged across the field. As a result, the empennage and wings sustained substantial damage.
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
- Aerodynamic stall/spin during maneuvering defining event
- Loss of control in flight during maneuvering
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring other person › Instructor/check pilot
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Student/instructed pilot
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 300 hours in all; 161 in this make and model; 34 in the last 90 days
- Seat: rgt
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 2 hours in all; 2 in this make and model
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ADS Dallas TX at 12:15 pm
- Destination: ADS Dallas TX
- Flight plan: VFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 230° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 29.89 inHg
- Observation at 12:53 pm from KTKI, 30 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
5 documents, released by the NTSB on August 25, 2022. 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 | Student's Statement | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 2 | Instructor's Statement | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Airplane Log Data | data file | Download |
| 4 | Case Findings | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 5 | Release of Aircraft Wreckage, NTSB Form 6120.15 | PDF, 2 pages | 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.