Amateur-built BABY GREAT LAKES accident near Iowa Park, Texas, November 3, 1999
On November 3, 1999 at about 1:30 pm local time, a amateur-built BABY GREAT LAKES, registered N415, was substantially damaged in an accident near Iowa Park, Texas (Wichita Valley airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot's failure to refuel the airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 3, 1999 · about 1:30 pm local time
- Place
- Iowa Park, Texas · Wichita Valley · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built BABY GREAT LAKES BABY GREAT
- Registration
- N415 · registry record · serial 6814K130B
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
During a go-around, the airplane's engine lost power as a result of fuel exhaustion. The pilot stated that he had recently purchased the airplane, and the previous owner had informed him that the airplane required fuel before its next flight. The pilot was performing high-speed taxi tests and simulated takeoffs on a taxiway when the airplane began to veer toward the edge of the taxiway. The pilot elected to take off and fly one traffic pattern. While on approach to the runway, he realized the airplane's airspeed was high, and he initiated a go-around. As the airplane reached a nose-up attitude, the engine 'sputtered' and lost total power. A forced landing was executed and the airplane impacted the ground. An FAA inspector examined the airplane at the accident site and reported that there was 'one cup of fuel in the fuselage mounted fuel tank.'
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
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 285 hours in all; 3 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 215 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 370 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 30, 1999; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 850 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-85F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: F14 at 1:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22, 3,050 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:56 pm from SPS, 5 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
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.