Amateur-built Saberwing accident near Valdosta, Georgia, June 11, 2024
On June 11, 2024, a 2014 amateur-built Saberwing, registered N120SW, was substantially damaged in an accident during enroute near Valdosta, Georgia (Valdosta Rgnl airport). It was a flight test under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The total loss of engine power due to the shearing of the woodruff key that indexed the crankshaft gear and hub assembly to the crankshaft, which resulted in the gear and hub rotating from their indexed position and caused the crankshaft-to-camshaft timing to become misaligned.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 11, 2024
- Place
- Valdosta, Georgia · Valdosta Rgnl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Saberwing, built 2014
- Registration
- N120SW · registry record · serial CLAPP04
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight test · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot departed the airport on a local flight to perform system checks of the experimental amateur-built airplane. During a functional check of the ignition system, while the pilot was selecting between the points and electronic ignition at a high engine power setting, the engine lost all power about 8 miles away from the airport. After multiple unsuccessful attempts to restart the engine, the pilot declared an emergency and executed a forced landing to a field. The airplane subsequently impacted a utility line and came to rest inverted in a field about 2 miles from the airport. The right wing, fuselage, and empennage sustained substantial damage. Postaccident examination of the automotive conversion engine revealed that the woodruff key that indexed the crankshaft gear and hub assembly to the crankshaft was sheared. The gear and hub assembly had rotated about 30° from its indexed position, resulting in the crankshaft-to-camshaft timing being out of alignment and a subsequent total loss of engine power. According to the pilot, who had built the engine about 17 years and 20 flight hours before the accident, when switching from points to electronic ignition sources, there was a small interval for the electronics to power up, resulting in a jolt across the engine when power was restored. The jolt, at a high power setting, was likely enough to rotate the gear and shear the woodruff key.
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
- Loss of engine power (total) during enroute defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during approach
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine (reciprocating) › Recip eng front section › Failure
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, private
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,166 hours in all; 436 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 2,029 as pilot in command; 76 on instruments
- Last flight review: September 23, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 551 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, March 30, 2024; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Spyder Engines 120HP1FB (piston); 317 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: VLD Valdosta GA at 11:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 4, 5,598 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 73°F (23°C)
- Altimeter: 29.75 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from VLD, 2 miles away
Weather report (METAR): KVLD 102353Z 21003KT 10SM CLR 31/23 A2975 RMK AO2 SLP081 T03060228 10367 20306 52003
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
5 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 | NTSB 6120 1 Form | PDF, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Photo Array | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Mor Pilot Statement and Engine Examination Summary | PDF, 7 pages | View Download |
| 4 | Maintenance Records | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 5 | Wreckage Release Form | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ERA24LA258.