Amateur-built KITFOX SERIES 7 accident near Plymouth, Massachusetts, October 18, 2012
On October 18, 2012 at about 3:40 pm local time, a amateur-built KITFOX SERIES 7, registered N555HT, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Plymouth, Massachusetts (Plymouth Municipal 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 improper landing flare and subsequent inadequate recovery from a bounced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 18, 2012 · about 3:40 pm local time
- Place
- Plymouth, Massachusetts · Plymouth Municipal Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built KITFOX SERIES 7
- Registration
- N555HT · no longer on the register · serial S60111-076
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that during the final approach he increased the airplane’s airspeed from 65 to 70 mph to compensate for light windshear. Upon touchdown, the airplane bounced twice, and the pilot increased engine power slightly to allow the airplane to settle on the main landing gear. After it settled, the nose landing gear collapsed, substantially damaging the firewall. The airplane came to rest upright on the runway. The pilot surmised that the second bounce must have separated the nose landing gear. A witness to the accident, who was a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, stated that the nose landing gear touched down first, followed by bounces with two or three more nosegear touchdowns, before the nose landing gear collapsed and the airplane came to rest. The recorded wind at the airport about the time of the accident indicated a left crosswind at 8 knots.
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
- Abnormal runway contact during landing (flare/touchdown)
- Landing gear collapse during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
- Nose over/nose down during landing (flare/touchdown)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Landing flare › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: private, sport pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 265 hours in all; 6 in this make and model; 1 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 265 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 790 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, September 26, 2012; 7 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PYM Plymouth MA at 3:00 pm
- Destination: PYM Plymouth MA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 4,350 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 2,900 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 3:52 pm from PYM
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.
Other NTSB records under N555HT 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.