Czech Aircraft Works Sportcruiser accident near Suffolk, Virginia, December 21, 2009
On December 21, 2009 at about 6:04 pm local time, a Czech Aircraft Works Sportcruiser, registered N524SC, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Suffolk, Virginia (Chesapeake Regional Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate recovery from a stall and inadvertent spin. Contributing to the accident was the improperly marked airspeed indicator and the airplane manufacturer's improper airspeed information. Also contributing was the instructor's inadequate supervision of the pilot.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 21, 2009 · about 6:04 pm local time
- Place
- Suffolk, Virginia · Chesapeake Regional Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured and 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Czech Aircraft Works Sportcruiser
- Registration
- N524SC · registry record · serial 07SC020
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The recently certificated pilot was receiving a check-out in the light sport airplane. He was performing slow-flight maneuvers, and because the airplane was already configured, the instructor suggested he perform a power-off stall. The pilot reduced power to idle, and as the airspeed decreased, he increased the pitch attitude to induce a stall. At the onset of the stall, the pilot added power, the airplane yawed left, and “snapped" into a tight spin to the left. The instructor announced that she had the flight controls, and the pilot released them. The instructor verbalized her spin recovery control inputs as she performed them, but the airplane continued to spin and lose altitude. The airplane eventually stopped spinning, and during the post-spin dive recovery, the airplane struck trees and terrain, and came to rest inverted. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed the airplane's airspeed indicator's color code range markings were inaccurate and did not agree with the information published in the supplied airplane manufacturer's Pilot Operating Handbook (POH). Depending on the configuration of the airplane, the difference between the published indicated airspeed and the published calibrated airspeeds was as much as 20 knots. The indicated airspeed is an important value for the pilot as it directly indicates stall speed and various airframe structurally limited speeds, regardless of density altitude. If the pilot is receiving inaccurate information from the airspeed indicator, the airplane may stall at a higher airspeed than the pilot is anticipating. The airplane also experienced a previous accident in which the improperly marked airspeed indicator contributed to the accident. While the airplane manufacturer agreed to make changes to the POH after that accident, those changes were not complete and the accident report was not published prior to this accident.
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
- Aerodynamic stall/spin during maneuvering defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
The NTSB's findings
- factor Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring other person › Instructor/check pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Airspeed › Related operating info
- factor Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Delayed action › Instructor/check pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Incorrect action performance › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Airspeed › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 99 hours in all; 0 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 7 in the last 30 days; 40 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 470 hours in all; 20 in this make and model; 140 in the last 90 days; 33 in the last 30 days; 383 as pilot in command; 153 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 12, 2009
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 868 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, November 17, 2009; 42 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912 ULS (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CPK Chesapeake VA at 5:45 pm
- Destination: CPK Chesapeake VA
- Flight plan: none
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,900 ft
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 25°F (-4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.09 inHg
- Observation at 10:00 pm from CPK, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | 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.
Other NTSB records under N524SC the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.