Amateur-built RV-4 accident near Gainesville, Georgia, September 12, 2010
On September 12, 2010 at about 8:23 pm local time, a amateur-built RV-4, registered N311U, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Gainesville, Georgia (Lee Gilmer Memorial 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 see and avoid marked power lines during low-level flight over a lake.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 12, 2010 · about 8:23 pm local time
- Place
- Gainesville, Georgia · Lee Gilmer Memorial Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RV-4
- Registration
- N311U · registry record · serial 2362
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot, while on a cross country flight he decided to descend and overfly a lake. While maneuvering over the lake with the setting sun at low level, the right main landing gear struck a marked power line, about 70 feet above the lake's surface; the right landing gear separated and broke an engine mount on the airplane. The pilot immediately turned the airplane toward a nearby airport and performed a forced landing. The left main landing gear collapsed on landing and the firewall sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. A witness stated that the power lines were marked by orange balls, while the pilot stated that the balls were red and dark. When asked how the accident could have been prevented, the pilot stated that yellow or white balls would have been easier to see.
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
What happened, in order
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during enroute (cruise) defining event
- Loss of control on ground during landing (flare/touchdown)
- Runway excursion during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Lack of action › Pilot
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Wire › Awareness of condition
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,022 hours in all; 1,410 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: June 13, 2009
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,410 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, September 13, 2009
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Ama/Expr UNKNOWN ENG (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: INT Winston Salem NC at 7:00 pm
- Destination: CTJ Carrollton GA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 23, 5,500 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.02 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from GVL
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight 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.