Amateur-built Dragonfly accident near Groveland, Florida, April 19, 2024
On April 19, 2024 at about 5:30 pm local time, a 2024 amateur-built Dragonfly, registered UNREG, was substantially damaged in an accident during initial climb near Groveland, Florida (Sheets airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s improper installation and inspection of the right lower wing strut attachment bolt, which resulted in the inflight failure of the right wing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 19, 2024 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- Groveland, Florida · Sheets · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Dragonfly NO SERIES, built 2024
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register · serial 0
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to witnesses, the airplane departed and climbed to an altitude about 200 to 300 ft above ground level and then turned before the right wing “folded upward” and the airplane descended in a spiral to the ground. Postaccident examination revealed that the right lower wing strut attachment was not properly assembled; the bolt intended to connect the wing strut block to the fuselage bulkhead was threaded through the fuselage structure and tightened, but had not passed through the hole in the strut block, resulting in no load-bearing connection between the wing strut and the fuselage. The absence of deformation or damage to the bolt and wing strut block at the attachment point was consistent with the improper installation of the bolt. Without the structural support of the right lower wing strut, the wing was unable to sustain the aerodynamic loads encountered during the initial climb, resulting in an in-flight structural failure of the right wing. The accident flight was the airplane’s first flight since it was assembled by the pilot. The airplane was unregistered and had not been issued an airworthiness certificate or operating limitations, nor had it been inspected by a designated airworthiness representative or an FAA inspector before the flight.
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
- Aircraft structural failure during initial climb defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during uncontrolled descent
- Aircraft maintenance event during prior to flight
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft structures › Wing structure › Main frame (on wing) › Not installed/available
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Inspection › Preflight inspection › Pilot
- Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware › Misc hardware › Fasteners › Inadequate inspection
- Aircraft › Aircraft structures › Wing structure › Main frame (on wing) › Incorrect service/maintenance
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Maintenance › Installation › Owner/builder
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine
- Flight time: 1,432 hours in all; 1,432 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 992 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 582 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 18/3, 2,000 ft by 115 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.04 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 pm from MLB, 20 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KMLB 191753Z 08008KT 10SM CLR 29/20 A3004 RMK AO2 SLP171 T02940200 10300 20206 58017=
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
8 documents, released by the NTSB on April 22, 2026. 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 | Mor Airport Manager Statement | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
| 2 | NTSB Mor Pilot's Background | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
| 3 | Mor FAA Statement | PDF, 2 pages · our copy | View Download |
| 4 | Wreckage Examination Summary | PDF, 5 pages · our copy | View Download |
| 5 | Maintenance Manual Excerpts | PDF, 5 pages · our copy | View Download |
| 6 | Mor Medical Examiner Information | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
| 7 | Toxicological Report | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
| 8 | Investigative Photos | PDF, 9 pages · our copy | View Download |
Other NTSB records under UNREG 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.