Amateur-built Kitfox S7 Super Spor accident near Silver Bay, Minnesota, March 29, 2018
On March 29, 2018 at about 2:30 pm local time, a 2017 amateur-built Kitfox S7 Super Spor, registered N141AB, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Silver Bay, Minnesota (Silver Bay 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 hard landing and subsequent failure to maintain airspeed and bank control during the aborted landing, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 29, 2018 · about 2:30 pm local time · cases in 2018
- Place
- Silver Bay, Minnesota · Silver Bay Muni · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Kitfox S7 Super Spor, built 2017
- Registration
- N141AB · registry record · serial KA13243271
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot in the experimental amateur-built, tailwheel-equipped airplane reported that, during landing with a slight right crosswind, he flared too early and the airplane bounced. He aborted the landing by adding full power, and the airplane drifted to the left. The left wing contacted the ground and he over corrected to the right. The airplane stalled and impacted the ground, and subsequently nosed over. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing and the empennage. The pilot reported that the wind at the accident airport at the time of the accident was from 280° at 6 knots, gusting to 8 knots. The pilot aborted the landing on runway 25. The pilot reported that there were no 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 defining event
- Abnormal runway contact during landing
- Loss of control on ground during landing (landing roll)
- Attempted remediation/recovery during landing
- Nose over/nose down during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Airspeed › Not attained/maintained
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Lateral/bank control › Not attained/maintained
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Landing flare › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: sport pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea
- Flight time: 965 hours in all; 58 in this make and model; 19 in the last 90 days; 17 in the last 30 days; 942 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: October 15, 2017
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 30.5 hours
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS (piston); 43 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BFW Silver Bay MN at 2:25 pm
- Destination: BFW Silver Bay MN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 3,200 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,700 ft
- Temperature: 25°F (-4°C), dew point 14°F (-10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.05 inHg
- Observation at 2:15 pm from KBFW
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on July 12, 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 - Photos | 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
- N141AB on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Rotax 912ULS 62 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Silver Bay Municipal · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Minnesota 1,544 since 1982 · 209 in the last ten years
- Minnesota 6,939 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/GAA18CA186.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.