Amateur-built CHALLENGER II accident near Concord, New Hampshire, November 20, 2024
On November 20, 2024 at about 3:53 pm local time, a 2008 amateur-built CHALLENGER II, registered N1666R, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Concord, New Hampshire (Concord Muni airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain directional control and eventual stall/mush of the airplane while trying to secure an open door in flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 20, 2024 · about 3:53 pm local time
- Place
- Concord, New Hampshire · Concord Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built CHALLENGER II, built 2008
- Registration
- N1666R · registry record · serial CH2-0899-1897
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot/owner of the recently purchased experimental amateur-built airplane submitted a report to the NTSB immediately after the accident. He explained that as he maneuvered the airplane in a left crosswind turn, the gullwing-styled cabin door opened, “creating significant noise and buffeting that affected aircraft stability and directional control.” The pilot said he attempted to secure the door and stabilize the airplane, but that it continued in a left descending turn that he could not arrest, and that he ultimately reduced power and completed a “mushing stall to ground contact” that resulted in no injury to himself but substantial damage to the airframe. A conversation with the airplane kit manufacturer revealed that the airplane was controllable with a door open in flight. He said the airplane required vigilance and proper use of the rudder to maintain coordinated flight and added that those transitioning from production airplanes benefitted from “differences training” because of the design and function of the pedals. An FAA inspector inspected the doors on the airplane and found that they closed and locked securely, and he confirmed flight control continuity. In conversation with the pilot after the inspection, the pilot volunteered that there was nothing wrong with the flight controls of the airplane and that he “may have overcontrolled the aircraft while trying to close the door” which resulted in the hard landing.
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 control in flight during takeoff defining event
- Preflight or dispatch event during prior to flight
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft structures › Doors › Passenger/crew doors › Incorrect use/operation
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 1,351 hours in all; 8 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 1,301 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 20, 2024
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 511.9 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, August 22, 2024
- Maximum gross weight: 800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 503 DCDI (piston); 512 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 35, 6,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.78 inHg
- Observation at 3:51 pm from CON
Weather report (METAR): KCON 202051Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 12/03 A2978 RMK AO2 SLP086 T01220033 53002
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 3 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photo 1 – View of Airplane as Found (FAA)
Photo 2 – View of Damage to Cabin Floor and Structure (FAA)
Photo 3 – View of Cabin “Gullwing” and Cockpit Doors (FAA)The NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
4 documents, released by the NTSB on July 17, 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 | FAA Inspector's Statement | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 3 | Kit Manufacturer Memorandum for Record | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Photos | PDF, 3 pages · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Other NTSB records under N1666R 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.