Amateur-built VELOCITY XL RG accident near Locust Grove, Georgia, February 16, 2018
On February 16, 2018 at about 11:35 pm local time, a 2003 amateur-built VELOCITY XL RG, registered N551ZL, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Locust Grove, Georgia (Mallards Landing 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 failure to extend the landing gear due to his distraction by talking on the radio, which resulted in a gear-up landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 16, 2018 · about 11:35 pm local time · cases in 2018
- Place
- Locust Grove, Georgia · Mallards Landing · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VELOCITY XL RG NO SERIES, built 2003
- Registration
- N551ZL · registry record · serial 3RX025
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that, his first approach to land in the airplane was a little fast and high, so he raised the gear and applied full power for the go-around. During the second approach, he was talking with a person on the ground over the radio. Subsequently, he got distracted and landed with the landing gear in the up-and-locked position. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported in a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board investigator-in-charge that the gear-up warning switch had been disabled.
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
- Landing gear not configured during landing defining event
- Abnormal runway contact during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Gear extension and retract sys › Not used/operated other cases naming the landing gear
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Attention › Pilot
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Forgotten action/omission › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 625 hours in all; 12 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days; 550 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 28, 2017
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: unk
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 340 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, February 9, 2018
- Maximum gross weight: 2,900 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 (piston); 340 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: X26 Sebastian FL at 8:00 pm
- Destination: GA04 Locust Grove GA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 4,500 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 290° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 11:35 pm from K6A2, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 1 picture from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
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
3 documents, released by the NTSB on April 9, 2018. 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, 9 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Memorandum for Record - Telephone Interview, Pilot | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Accident Photo (Courtesy of FAA) | PDF, 1 page · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N551ZL on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 4,223 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Mallards Landing Airport · nearest airport
- Sebastian Municipal · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Georgia 2,138 since 1982 · 361 in the last ten years
- Georgia 8,804 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/GAA18CA148.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.