Amateur-built Classic 4 accident near New Carlisle, Ohio, October 13, 2020
On October 13, 2020 at about 5:40 pm local time, a 2006 amateur-built Classic 4, registered N47KC, was destroyed in an accident during landing (landing roll) near New Carlisle, Ohio (Andy Barnhart Memorial Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain pitch control of the airplane during landing, which caused the airplane to nose over during landing roll. Contributing to the accident was the main landing gear modification which increased the airplane’s tendency to nose over during ground operations.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 13, 2020 · about 5:40 pm local time
- Place
- New Carlisle, Ohio · Andy Barnhart Memorial Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Classic 4 NO SERIES, built 2006
- Registration
- N47KC · registry record · serial C04060296
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot and his pilot-rated-passenger were conducting a local flight in the tailwheel-equipped experimental airplane. The accident occurred during the first landing after the original main landing gear, equipped with bungie-cord shock absorber, had been replaced with a main landing gear equipped with a steel-spring shock absorber. The pilot reported that after a normal touchdown on the main landing gear he pushed the control stick slightly forward to keep the airplane from ballooning, but the airplane nosed over during the landing roll. A witness reported seeing the airplane’s tail continue to rise during the landing roll until the airplane nosed over on the runway. A postaccident fire destroyed the airplane’s cabin and the inboard halves of both wings. A postaccident review of the airplane’s weight-and-balance record indicated that the owner/builder had correctly recalculated the center-of-gravity (CG) position after the main landing gear replacement, and although the CG location had not moved appreciably, the wheel axle position had moved aft about 2.75 inches, thus increasing the airplane’s tendency to nose over during ground 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
- Aircraft maintenance event during prior to flight
- Nose over/nose down during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Pitch control › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Main landing gear › Design
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,066 hours in all; 45 in this make and model; 824 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
Pilot-Rated Passenger
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 365 hours in all; 325 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 13, 2018
- Medical certificate: BasicMed
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 45 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, October 16, 2019; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotec R2800 (piston); 45 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 28, 2,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.13 inHg
- Observation at 1:56 pm from FFO, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
5 documents, released by the NTSB on July 27, 2021. 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 | Witness Statement | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Memorandum of Conversation (FAA Inspector Andrew Porter) | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Weather Data | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 5 | Photos | 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.