Amateur-built Horizon 1 accident near Niles, Michigan, June 19, 2002
On June 19, 2002 at about 1:00 am local time, a amateur-built Horizon 1, registered N816DJ, was substantially damaged in an accident near Niles, Michigan (Jerry Tyler Memorial 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 pilot's improper recovery from a bounced landing. A factor was the pilot's lack of experience in tailwheel airplanes.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 19, 2002 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Niles, Michigan · Jerry Tyler Memorial Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Horizon 1
- Registration
- N816DJ · registry record · serial H091
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The amateur-built airplane sustained substantial damage when it nosed over after a bounced landing. The pilot reported, "Flew left hand pattern for runway 4 - Landed in the grass past intersection. Back taxied runway 4 and took off again. On second landing aircraft bounced, I neutralized the stick and aircraft settled back on grass an[d] nosed over, very quickly. I should have [kept] stick back and controlled descent with throttle." The pilot reported he had 112.9 hours of total flight experience and 7.6 hours of flight experience in the make and model of aircraft. He reported, "Low time tailwheel pilot, just need more experience."
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 113 hours in all; 8 in this make and model; 7 in the last 90 days; 7 in the last 30 days; 65 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 27, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: condition inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,050 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental A-65-8 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3TR Niles MI at 11:50 pm
- Destination: 3TR MI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 4
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.06 inHg
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.