Extra Flugzeugbau GMBH EA 300/L accident near Tucumcari, New Mexico, October 4, 2006
On October 4, 2006 at about 7:25 pm local time, a Extra Flugzeugbau GMBH EA 300/L, registered N300BB, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tucumcari, New Mexico (Tucumcari Muni airport). It was an air show or air race 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 pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control during aerobatic flight, resulting in an inadvertent accelerated stall. Contributing factors include the low altitude for recovery from the loop and the high density altitude.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 4, 2006 · about 7:25 pm local time
- Place
- Tucumcari, New Mexico · Tucumcari Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Extra Flugzeugbau GMBH EA 300/L · all EA 300/Ls on the register
- Registration
- N300BB · registry record · serial 086
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Air show or air race flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was just exiting a loop close to the ground when, according to multiple witnesses, the wings began to shake back and forth. One witness reported that it appeared as if the airplane was rocking. According to a cameraman recording the performance, the pilot did not "start his pull until he was too low to recover." He stated, "When the plane passed overhead, the noise the air was making as it passed over sounded very interrupted or turbulent." The cameraman noted, "There was a definitive break in the wing flight, a dip or stall, as it passed by." The airplane impacted the ground and came to rest to the south of the runway. An examination of the airplane, engine, and related systems revealed no anomalies. Winds at the time of the accident were reported as 060 degrees at 15 knots gusting to 20 knots. Density altitude was calculated to be 5,700 feet.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,093 hours in all; 590 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 11 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: May 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 583.2 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 1,918 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming AEIO-540-L1B5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TCC Tucumcari NM at 7:20 pm
- Destination: TCC
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 15 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.32 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from TCC, 1 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.