Just Aircraft HIGHLANDER accident near Danville, Pennsylvania, June 6, 2008
On June 6, 2008, a Just Aircraft HIGHLANDER, registered N6366, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Danville, Pennsylvania (Danville 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 student pilot's loss of control during takeoff.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 6, 2008 · cases in 2008
- Place
- Danville, Pennsylvania · Danville Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Just Aircraft HIGHLANDER
- Registration
- N6366 · registry record · serial JAESC0143
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot was practicing takeoffs and landings. On the last landing, the front wheel lifted off the ground, came down, then lifted again, so he decided to take off. Once airbourne, the airplane started a turn to the left. The pilot then banked right to avoid a tree and struck the ground, resulting in substantial damage to the airplane. The pilot stated to the Federal Aviation Administration inspectors at the scene that there were no problems 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
What happened, in order
- Loss of control in flight during takeoff defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Student/instructed pilot
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 30 hours in all; 30 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS; 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 8N8 Danville PA
- Destination: 8N8 Danville PA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 3,000 ft by 60 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 160° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 7,000 ft; scat at 5,500 ft
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.01 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
1 document, released by the NTSB on June 11, 2010. 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 Statement | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N6366 on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Just Aircraft 6 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS 62 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Danville Airport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Pennsylvania 1,836 since 1982 · 234 in the last ten years
- Pennsylvania 6,194 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/CHI08LA153.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.