Becker Wag Aero SUPER SPORT accident near Hamilton, North Dakota, November 3, 1998
On November 3, 1998 at about 7:55 pm local time, a Becker Wag Aero SUPER SPORT, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N285BB, was destroyed in an accident near Hamilton, North Dakota. 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 fatigue failure of the lower wing strut attachment bracket.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 3, 1998 · about 7:55 pm local time
- Place
- Hamilton, North Dakota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Becker Wag Aero SUPER SPORT SUPER SPOR, amateur-built
- Registration
- N285BB · no longer on the register · serial BA-2-85
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A witness reported that he saw the airplane about 1,000 to 2,000 feet above ground and 'falling' from the sky. He reported a wing had separated from the airplane. The wreckage was located in a field and the right wing was found about 450 feet to the southwest of the main wreckage. The pilot had built the experimental airplane with his brothers in 1985. The airplane had approximately 1,800 hours total time. A metallurgical examination of the lower right wing strut attachment bracket revealed fatigue fractures of the lower sheet of the attachment bracket. Each side of the lower sheet contained a bend relief slot at the location of maximum bend in the lower sheet. The examination revealed that the fracture through the lower sheet extended across the bracket from one bend relief slot to the other. Aircraft fabric covered over the location of the fracture and it could not be observed during a normal pre-flight. To properly inspect the area where the fracture occurred, the fabric needed to be cut and pulled back from the aircraft frame.
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: single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 1,581 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,400 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ND06 Cavalier ND at 7:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 4,500 ft
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from GFK, 65 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.