Amateur-built Searey accident near Sherrills Ford, North Carolina, May 31, 2023
On May 31, 2023 at about 7:30 pm local time, a 1998 amateur-built Searey, registered N2440S, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Sherrills Ford, North Carolina (Long Island Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to configure the amphibious airplane’s landing gear before conducting a forced landing to a lake after a loss of engine power. Also causal was the occluded gascolator and the pilot’s lack of knowledge about the airplane’s fuel system, which resulted in his failure to locate and identify the condition of the gascolator following a previous loss of engine power event.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 31, 2023 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Sherrills Ford, North Carolina · Long Island Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Searey, built 1998
- Registration
- N2440S · registry record · serial 1MK162
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot of the amphibious, amateur-built airplane, who had purchased the airplane several months earlier and did not hold a rating for airplane single-engine sea, departed the lakefront grass runway and performed a sharp left turn to assume his enroute heading without retracting the airplane’s landing gear. The pilot reported that, about halfway through the turn, the engine exhibited a sudden loss of power but continued running with excessive vibration. Remedial actions to restore power were unsuccessful. The pilot stated that he selected a forced landing site on the lake and moved the landing gear selector to the “up” position with “about 25 ft of altitude nearing 50 mph of airspeed.” Photographs taken by a witness showed that the airplane contacted the water with the landing gear extended. The pilot stated that the airplane pitched forward upon water contact and came to rest upright in the water with substantial damage to the fuselage and right wing strut. Months before the accident, the pilot experienced a power loss event with the airplane that he and other owners of the same airplane make/model could not diagnose, ultimately agreeing that it was a case of the fuel tank unporting due to a low fuel state. Immediately after the accident, the pilot started the engine several times, but it would “choke out” each time. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed a gascolator occluded by rusty particles and containing water and trace amounts of fuel. The pilot reported that he was unaware of this gascolator in the fuel system, and that its occlusion could have led to both engine power loss events. The owner declined to test run the engine after clearing the gascolator of contaminants, citing fears of further damage to the airplane since the engine was loose on its mounts.
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
- Fuel starvation during takeoff defining event
- Landing gear not configured during landing
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Lack of action › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Experience/knowledge › Knowledge › Knowledge of equipment › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Fuel system › Fuel filter › strainer › Not serviced/maintained
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Gear extension and retract sys › Not used/operated
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 361.5 hours in all; 36 in this make and model; 42.7 in the last 90 days; 18.3 in the last 30 days; 320 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 26, 2021
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 724 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, February 6, 2023; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,430 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotax 914 (piston); 724 hours total
The flight
- Destination: KSVH Statesville NC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 05, 3,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 4,100 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 2:25 pm from SVH, 5 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KSVH 311825Z AUTO 05006KT 10SM OVC041 22/15 A3012 RMK AO2 T02220154
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
6 documents, released by the NTSB on March 19, 2025. 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, 10 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Memorandum for Record A�� Telephone Interview, Pilot | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Memorandum for Record A�� Telephone Interview, Passenger | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Email Excerpt - Nc State Highway Patrol Report | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 5 | Pilot's Statement Regarding Airplane Troubleshooting | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 6 | Photo Array | PDF, 6 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.