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Accidents · NTSB ERA19LA050 · Final report

Ultralite Sro Stingsport accident near Clermont, Florida, November 17, 2018

On November 17, 2018 at about 4:20 pm local time, a 2006 Ultralite Sro Stingsport, registered N494N, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Clermont, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

An inflight failure of the airplane’s horizontal stabilizer.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
November 17, 2018 · about 4:20 pm local time
Place
Clermont, Florida · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
1 person had minor injuries.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Ultralite Sro Stingsport, built 2006
Registration
N494N · no longer on the register · serial TLUSA150
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

The pilot stated that he was in cruise flight when he received an automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast traffic alert of traffic approaching from his one o'clock position and closing at "a high rate of speed." The pilot went on to describe control inputs and airplane attitudes during his response to the perceived threat, which ultimately resulted in a loss of control and aerodynamic spin. During the pilot’s attempted recovery from the spin, the nose of the airplane pitched forward uncontrolled and the airplane entered a high-speed, nose-down descent. It is likely that during these remedial actions to regain control, the structure surrounding the horizontal stabilizer failed, and the stabilizer separated from the airplane. The pilot then successfully deployed the airplane’s ballistic parachute system, and it landed in a pasture. Examination of the failed structure surrounding the horizontal stabilizer revealed areas of delamination with dry glass fibers indicative of improper material layup with inadequate resin application. It could not be determined to what extent the inflight separation of the horizontal stabilizer was due to this defect, or whether the pilot’s control inputs during the response to the traffic warning, departure from controlled flight, and subsequent attempted recovery attempt imparted forces onto the horizontal stabilizer that were beyond its nominal structural capability.

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

  1. Loss of control in flight during maneuvering
  2. Aircraft structural failure during maneuvering defining event
  3. Attempted remediation/recovery during maneuvering

The NTSB's findings

  • Aircraft › Aircraft structures › Empennage structure › Horizontal stabilizer › Failure

Pilot

  • Certificate: sport pilot
  • Ratings: single-engine land
  • Flight time: 182.8 hours in all; 67.4 in this make and model; 8.3 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 79 as pilot in command
  • Last flight review: May 27, 2017
  • Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
  • Seat: left
  • Injury: minor injuries

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 337.5 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, December 1, 2017; 18 hours since
  • Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
  • Seats: 2
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Rotax 912ULS (piston); 338 hours total

The flight

  • Departed from: X06 Arcadia FL at 3:30 pm
  • Destination: X04 Apopka FL
  • Flight plan: none

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: from 090° at 5 knots
  • Visibility: 10 statute miles
  • Sky: clear
  • Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
  • Altimeter: 30.18 inHg
  • Observation at 4:56 pm from ISM, 17 miles away

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Flight crew1

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

6 documents, released by the NTSB on October 7, 2021. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.

The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.

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.