Amateur-built COOT accident near Malone, Wisconsin, June 7, 2018
On June 7, 2018, a 1980 amateur-built COOT, registered N100TN, was substantially damaged in an accident during takeoff near Malone, Wisconsin. 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s improper decision to take off with a known structural issue, which resulted in hull damage.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 7, 2018
- Place
- Malone, Wisconsin · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built COOT A, built 1980
- Registration
- N100TN · registry record · serial SS22
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the pilot in the experimental amateur-built amphibious airplane, during takeoff from a lake, the airplane bounced twice, but on the third bounce, the hull "gave way." Water entered the airplane, and the pilot exited through the canopy. The pilot reported that the hull had been repaired previously, but it still had "some leakage" after the repair. Substantial damage was sustained to the forward left side of the hull where the sponson was attached. Photographs provided by the Federal Aviation Administration showed long-term water damage to the plywood and fiberglass hull structure.
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
- Miscellaneous/other during takeoff defining event
- Aircraft structural failure during takeoff
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Decision making/judgment › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft structures › Fuselage › Fuselage main structure › Fatigue/wear/corrosion
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 905.9 hours in all; 12.8 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 905.9 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 23, 2017
- Medical certificate: BasicMed
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 538 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, October 25, 2017
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Malone WI
- Destination: Cheboygan MI
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.87 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 pm from KFLD, 17 miles away
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 GAA18CA329.