Buckeye Breeze XL accident near Buffalo City, Arkansas, February 21, 2007
On February 21, 2007 at about 9:35 pm local time, a Buckeye Breeze XL (powered-lift aircraft), registered N582W, was destroyed in an accident near Buffalo City, Arkansas. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain control of the aircraft during approach. A contributing factor was the reported encounter with severe turbulence.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 21, 2007 · about 9:35 pm local time
- Place
- Buffalo City, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Buckeye Breeze XL
- Registration
- N582W · no longer on the register · serial 16368
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 72-hour sport pilot initiated a descent to an open field where he intended to perform a touch and go landing on his registered powered parachute. The pilot, who reported having accumulated a total of 4 hours in the same make and model was seriously injured. The 15-statute mile flight was planned as a flight of two Rotax 582 powered parachutes. The pilot stated in the Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report (NTSB Form 6120.1) that he had "no memory of the flight;" however, a witness who was flying the other powered parachute, stated that the accident pilot was flying approximately 100 feet above the ground while maneuvering to land, when "he encountered severe turbulence causing the powered parachute to go into a tight spiral." The parachute impacted the ground at a high rate of descent, which was described to be "approximately 40 miles per hour descent rate." The weather at the nearest weather reporting station located approximately 9 miles to the northwest of the accident site, reported the wind from the east-northeast at 6 miles per hour, clear skies, visibility 10 statute miles, and a barometric pressure setting of 29.93 inches of Mercury.
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: sport pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 72 hours in all; 4 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 72 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 88 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 1,200 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 582 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Mountain Home AR at 9:30 pm
- Destination: Buffalo City AR
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
- Altimeter: 29.93 inHg
- Observation at 8:55 pm from KFLP, 9 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.