Amateur-built 320 accident near Houston, Texas, August 27, 2004
On August 27, 2004 at about 8:30 pm local time, a amateur-built 320, registered N30KR, was substantially damaged in an accident near Houston, Texas (Houston Southwest 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 premature lift-off before attaining adequate airspeed resulting in a stall and collision with the ground.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 27, 2004 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Houston, Texas · Houston Southwest Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built 320
- Registration
- N30KR · no longer on the register · serial 006
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 1,070-hour pilot reported that during takeoff on Runway 9 (a 5,000-foot long and 100-foot wide asphalt runway) the airplane became airborne, settled back onto the runway, exited the runway, before impacting a culvert at an intersecting taxiway. The pilot added that as the airplane became airborne, the "takeoff pitch was too steep" and he could not keep the airplane straight with rudder. The pilot reported that at the time of the accident, the wind was from the southeast at 15 knots.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,070 hours in all; 15 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 1,048 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: August 8, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,685 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-320-DIB (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AXH Houston TX at 8:30 pm
- Destination: BPT Beaumont TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 5,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,400 ft
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 77°F (25°C)
- Altimeter: 29.96 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from SGR, 11 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.