Czech Aircraft Works Spol Sro SPORTCRUISER accident near Salisbury, North Carolina, August 4, 2017
On August 4, 2017 at about 12:00 pm local time, a 2007 Czech Aircraft Works Spol Sro SPORTCRUISER, registered N777NG, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Salisbury, North Carolina (Rowan County airport). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The physical interference of the student pilot’s headset control unit with the canopy, which prevented the canopy latches from seating properly and resulted in the canopy opening in flight and the subsequent hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 4, 2017 · about 12:00 pm local time
- Place
- Salisbury, North Carolina · Rowan County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Czech Aircraft Works Spol Sro SPORTCRUISER A, built 2007 · all SPORTCRUISERs on the register
- Registration
- N777NG · registry record · serial 07SC059
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot reported that he had departed with the intent to perform touch-and-go takeoffs and landings. After takeoff, he realized that the canopy was not latched. He struggled to maintain airplane control in the pattern, but he was able to land normally. The student pilot then checked the latch handle, and he believed that he had secured the canopy correctly. He took off and flew one pattern but just before landing, the canopy opened and obstructed the pilot's view of the runway. The airplane landed hard and bounced, and the pilot aborted the landing. The student pilot flew a third pattern and made an approach over the runway centerline, "slightly above stall airspeed." The airplane landed hard on the runway, and the right main landing gear (MLG) and the nose landing gear separated from the airplane. The airplane skidded to a stop on the runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right MLG attachment points and the right-wing spar. The student pilot asserted that the canopy latch was down during the takeoffs but was not seated correctly. For the latch to seat correctly, "the canopy itself needed to be pushed up so that gravity seated the canopy." The airplane was equipped with a full-width clear canopy, hinged in the front and tipped forward for entry to the cockpit. The manually operated canopy was supposed to be closed by the pilot by reaching above their head and grabbing the handle identified by the manufacturer's illustrated parts catalogue as SF0730N. Per the photographs provided by Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) aviation safety inspectors, the handle was not installed on the canopy. The canopy security latches consisted of two metal claw-type latches that were mechanically moved forward to secure the canopy to the fuselage. The canopy latches were moved forward to the secure position when the pilot lowered the canopy "T" handle. The "T" handle was affixed to the baggage compartment front wall in the cockpit between the left and right seats just above the arm rest and just below the pilot headset audio input jacks. The student pilot's head set control unit was about 4 inches long by 1 inch in diameter. Photographs taken shortly after the accident and provided by FAA inspectors revealed that the control unit was lodged underneath the "T" handle. The student pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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
- Hard landing during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
- Loss of control in flight during takeoff
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Task environment › Physical workspace › Access to equipment/controls › Effect on operation
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Communications system › Interphone › Unintentional use/operation
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Student/instructed pilot
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 46 hours in all; 46 in this make and model; 11 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 7 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,593 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 1, 2017
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax ROTAX 912S (4 (piston); 153 hours total
- Operator: Nmg Aviation LLC
The flight
- Departed from: KRUQ Salisbury NC at 12:00 pm
- Destination: KRUQ Salisbury NC
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 20, 5,500 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.13 inHg
- Observation at 11:45 am from RUQ
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 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.
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 GAA17CA465.