Socata TB-20 accident near Groesbeck, Texas, July 6, 2007
On July 6, 2007 at about 4:43 pm local time, a Socata TB-20, registered N2801W, was destroyed in an accident near Groesbeck, Texas. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's loss of control due to spatial disorientation. Contributing factors were the pilot's perceived need to fly to home station and his lack of flight experience in actual instrument meteorological conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 6, 2007 · about 4:43 pm local time
- Place
- Groesbeck, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Socata TB-20 · all TB-20s on the register
- Registration
- N2801W · no longer on the register · serial 1158
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The instrument-rated commercial pilot departed on a cross-country flight through instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). The pilot made radio transmissions to ground control, tower, low radar approach control, and high radar approach control that he was "new at instruments" and that he had not flow in IMC "in a long time." While maneuvering back to get back on the centerline of the airway, while operating in an area of heavy precipitation, the pilot lost control of the airplane after he became spatially disoriented. Recorded radar data revealed flight with stable parameters until approximately 1140:49 when the airplane is recorded making an unexpected right turn at a rate of 2-degrees per second. A turn at this rate may not have been noticed by the pilot since there were no radar calls to departure control. The right turn continues until radar contact is lost at 1141:58 at which point that airplane is turning at a rate of approximately 5-degrees per second and descending at over 3,600 feet per minute. Wreckage and impact information was consistent with a right bank, low-angle, high-speed descent. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed in the area at the time of the accident. The descent profile was found to be consistent with the "graveyard spiral." Prior to flight, for unknown reasons, the telephone conversations with the Flight Service Station progressed from being conservative to a strong desire to fly home, consistent with the pilot phenomena "get-home-itis." The 26-year old pilot, was reported to have accumulated a total of 456.7 hours, of which 35.8 hours were in the same make and model. Prior to the accident flight, the pilot had accumulated a total of 2.5 hours of actual instrument time, with 105.7 hours of simulated instrument time.
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
- Flight time: 457 hours in all; 36 in this make and model; 59 in the last 90 days
- Last flight review: January 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,533.8 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, July 1, 2007
- Maximum gross weight: 2,943 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-C4D5D (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Maximum Aviation
The flight
- Departed from: ACT Waco TX at 4:30 pm
- Destination: LFK Groesbeck TX
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 1 statute miles
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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.