Cessna 140 accident near Lubbock, Texas, September 8, 2007
On September 8, 2007 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Cessna 140, registered N72699, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lubbock, Texas (Abernathy Muni airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were 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 of the airplane while landing. A contributing factor was the flight instructor's delay in taking remedial action.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 8, 2007 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Lubbock, Texas · Abernathy Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 140 · all 140s on the register
- Registration
- N72699 · registry record · serial 9875
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A flight instructor was providing flight instruction to a commercial pilot leading to a tailwheel endorsement. Toward the end of the instructional period, the flight instructor demonstrated wheel landings, which the pilot receiving instruction was able to perform satisfactorily. The flight instructor reported that while executing another wheel landing on Runway 17, the commercial pilot started to lose directional control, overcorrected, and used excessive differential braking. The tailwheel-equipped airplane pitched forward and subsequently nosed-over, coming to rest in the inverted position. Runway 17 was reported to be 4,000-foot long by 75-foot wide. The winds were reported as calm and the asphalt runway was dry. The flight instructor added that the directional control could have been corrected with an application of power rather than by brake application. Additionally, the flight instructor reported that there were no anomalies or malfunctions in the airplane's flight controls or tailwheel steering system.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 2,386 hours in all; 1,198 in this make and model; 7 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 2,284 as pilot in command; 1,006 on instruments
- Last flight review: December 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,262 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 2007
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C85 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LBB Lubbock TX at 3:00 pm
- Destination: F83 Abernathy TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 4,000 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 0 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,400 ft; scat at 2,600 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.09 inHg
- Observation at 3:40 pm from KLBB, 11 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.