Wag Aero CUBBY accident near Pell City, Alabama, August 6, 2020
On August 6, 2020 at about 3:22 pm local time, a 2007 Wag Aero CUBBY, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N30492, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Pell City, Alabama (St Clair County airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The flight instructor’s inadequate remedial action following the student pilot’s loss of directional control during landing, which resulted in a runway excursion and subsequent nose over.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 6, 2020 · about 3:22 pm local time
- Place
- Pell City, Alabama · St Clair County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Wag Aero CUBBY, built 2007, amateur-built
- Registration
- N30492 · no longer on the register · serial 9740
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor was providing initial flight training to the non-certificated student pilot in a tailwheel-equipped airplane. The flight instructor reported that while the student pilot was landing the airplane it began veering left immediately after touchdown. The flight instructor attempted to correct the yaw and applied the brakes, but the airplane continued off the left side of the runway with the tailwheel still in the air. The airplane impacted some dirt, which resulted in a nose over and substantial damage to the airplane’s left wing, empennage, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. The flight instructor reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures of the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Additionally, the flight instructor reported that the student pilot had accumulated about 2 hours of flight experience at the time of the accident and described that she, “…was showing great aptitude with landings but I should have delayed her attempting to do so to further in her training.”
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
- Attempted remediation/recovery during landing (landing roll)
- Runway excursion during landing (landing roll)
- Loss of control on ground during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
- Nose over/nose down during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Student/instructed pilot
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring other person › Instructor/check pilot
Flight instructor
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,500 hours in all; 30 in this make and model; 22 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: October 24, 2019
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rear
- Injury: minor injuries
Dual student
- Flight time: 2 hours in all; 2 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 268 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, April 2, 2020
- Maximum gross weight: 1,220 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-65 (piston); 3,216 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PLR Pell City AL at 2:20 pm
- Destination: PLR Pell City AL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 03, 5,001 ft by 80 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 79°F (26°C)
- Altimeter: 30.03 inHg
- Observation at 3:35 pm from PLR, 1 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
4 documents, released by the NTSB on April 19, 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.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Record of Conversation - Flight Instructor | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Flight Instructor Written Statement | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Photo Array | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
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.