Casa 1.131E accident near Mckinney, Texas, December 25, 2005
On December 25, 2005 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Casa 1.131E, registered N131AK, was destroyed in an accident near Mckinney, Texas (Square Air 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 failure to maintain directional control and airspeed, which resulted in an inadvertent stall. A contributing factor was the pilot's helmet and goggles shifting while maneuvering.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 25, 2005 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Mckinney, Texas · Square Air Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Casa 1.131E
- Registration
- N131AK · registry record · serial E3B-216
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 3,500-hour private pilot departed Runway 36, (a 1,850-feet long by 75-feet wide grass/turf runway) and made a sharp right turn to avoid the airspace of an airport located 4 miles to the south. During the turn, the pilot's new helmet and goggles were blown away from his face by the airstream. The biplane then stalled, spun to the right, and impacted terrain. The airplane came to rest on its nose, inverted, with the tail of the airplane leaning against a telephone pole. The pilot disconnected his harness and egressed the airplane as a post-impact fire ensued. The pilot was uninjured. In the recommendation section of the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1/2), the pilot recommended that the accident could have been prevented had an adequate preflight been performed, and had he maintained an appropriate angle of attack to avoid the stall.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all; 330 in this make and model
- Last flight review: October 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 330 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 1, 2005; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IA-360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: TS63 Mckinney TX at 10:25 pm
- Destination: KHQZ Mesquite TX
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 36, 1,850 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 9:53 pm from KTKI, 4 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.