Piper J-5A accident near Belton, Missouri, August 3, 2000
On August 3, 2000 at about 8:15 pm local time, a Piper J-5A, registered N600F, was destroyed in an accident near Belton, Missouri (Villnave Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot not maintaining directional control during the takeoff roll resulting in the inadvertent ground loop.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 3, 2000 · about 8:15 pm local time
- Place
- Belton, Missouri · Villnave Airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper J-5A · all J-5As on the register
- Registration
- N600F · no longer on the register · serial 5-196
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airport manager said that the student pilot arrived on the airport at around 1:30 to 2:00 p.m. He said that they conversed for a while, and then student pilot left. The airport manager said, "The airplane has no electrical system, so I hand-propped it to start. Then I came inside." The airport manager said that he didn't watch the takeoff roll. A witness was driving eastbound toward the airport when she saw "a yellow plane, very low, cross 195th [Street], going south." The witness said that as she got close to the crest of the hill on 195th street, she saw black smoke coming from the area south of where she was. The witness said that when she got to the top of the hill, where the end of the runway was, she saw black smoke and flames. She could not tell what was on fire. She thought that someone was burning something, so she went on her way. The witness said that when she saw the airplane cross over the road, it was not trailing any smoke or flames. An examination of the wreckage revealed no anomalies.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 30 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,067 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,200 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental A-75-9 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Destination: PVT MO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 18, 2,200 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 11,000 ft; scat at 4,300 ft
- Temperature: 187°F (86°C), dew point 158°F (70°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from OJC, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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.