Flight Design CTLS accident near Sandy Valley, Nevada, May 5, 2019
On May 5, 2019 at about 3:00 pm local time, a 2012 Flight Design CTLS, registered N175LM, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing near Sandy Valley, Nevada (Sky Ranch airport). It was an instructional 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 steep bank turn at low altitude, which resulted in a rapid descent and hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 5, 2019 · about 3:00 pm local time
- Place
- Sandy Valley, Nevada · Sky Ranch · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Flight Design CTLS Undesignat, built 2012
- Registration
- N175LM · no longer on the register · serial F-12-03-10
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that, during a biennial flight review, the flight instructor told him to expect a simulated engine failure during takeoff and an engine-out approach to a perpendicular runway. After departure and about 400 ft above ground level (agl), the instructor reduced power, and the pilot turned left to land on the perpendicular runway. He overshot the runway, banked to 40°, and felt a "strong sink." He leveled the wings and added full power about 150 to 200 ft agl, but the airplane continued to descend. The instructor stated he considered taking the flight controls, but the pilot maintained control. The airplane landed hard, the right main landing gear (MLG) struck a hole, the airplane veered right, and the left MLG separated. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions 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
- Landing area overshoot during landing
- Hard landing during landing defining event
- Landing gear collapse during landing
- Part(s) separation from AC during landing
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Lateral/bank control › Incorrect use/operation
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot, sport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 24,500 hours in all; 1,000 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 10,000 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 5, 2019
- Medical certificate: Sport Pilot
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot, military
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,000 hours in all; 20 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 10,000 as pilot in command; 8,000 on instruments
- Last flight review: November 13, 2017
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 491 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, October 29, 2018
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 912 ULS (piston); 491 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3L2 Sandy Valley NV at 2:20 pm
- Destination: 3L2 Sandy Valley NV
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 12, 3,300 ft by 105 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 29.79 inHg
- Observation at 2:56 pm from KHND, 26 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on May 16, 2019. 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 | Accident Photo | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
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.