Amateur-built Starduster SA-300 accident near Columbia, Illinois, July 24, 2007
On July 24, 2007 at about 3:30 pm local time, a amateur-built Starduster SA-300, registered N2498, was substantially damaged in an accident near Columbia, Illinois (Columbia 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper flare, which resulted in a hard landing and subsequent left main landing gear collapse.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 24, 2007 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Columbia, Illinois · Columbia · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Starduster SA-300
- Registration
- N2498 · registry record · serial 7242
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The left main landing gear collapsed during landing on runway 21 (2,450 feet long by 150 feet wide, dry grass) . The pilot stated that on short final for runway 21 the airplane's sink rate was "higher than it should have been" and that he "did not correct it soon enough." The airplane landed hard, the pilot felt something "give" on the left side, and the left main landing gear collapsed. The pilot stated that the airplane then "swerved to the left" but he was able to stop the airplane on the runway. The pilot reported no mechanical anomalies with the airplane.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,251 hours in all; 90 in this make and model; 13 in the last 90 days; 7 in the last 30 days; 1,029 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: November 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 314 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, July 1, 2007
- Maximum gross weight: 2,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental E-185-3 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: H49 Columbia IL at 9:45 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 21, 2,450 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 30.07 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from CPS, 8 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N2498 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CHI07CA242.