Wingtip To Wingtip LLC PANZL S-330 and amateur-built DHC 6 TWIN OTTER accident near Cedartown, Georgia, October 11, 2019
On October 11, 2019 at about 11:04 pm local time, 2 aircraft, Wingtip To Wingtip LLC PANZL S-330 (N540ML) and amateur-built DHC 6 TWIN OTTER (N166DH), were involved in the same accident near Cedartown, Georgia (Polk County Airport- Cornelius). No one was hurt; 12 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
***This report was modified on June 4, 2020. Please see the docket for this accident to view the original report.*** The departing pilot's failure to see and avoid the arriving airplane as it was turning off the runway from which the departing pilot was taking off.
***This report was modified on June 4, 2020. Please see the docket for this accident to view the original report.*** The departing pilot's failure to see and avoid the arriving airplane as it was turning off the runway from which the departing pilot was taking off.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 11, 2019 · about 11:04 pm local time
- Place
- Cedartown, Georgia · Polk County Airport- Cornelius · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 12 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft 1
- Wingtip To Wingtip LLC PANZL S-330, built 2008
- Registration
- N540ML · registry record · serial 008
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
- Aircraft 2
- Amateur-built DHC 6 TWIN OTTER 100, built 1967
- Registration
- N166DH · registry record · serial 66
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Skydiving flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative for the Wingtip To Wingtip LLC PANZL S-330 final · quoted from the NTSB record
***This report was modified on June 4, 2020. Please see the docket for this accident to view the original report.*** The pilot in the Panzl S-330 airplane reported that he was landing and had turned on the airport runway pilot-controlled lighting about 5 miles before arriving at the airport and transmitted a 2-mile final radio call over the airport's CTAF. He landed the airplane and made "S" turns on runway 28 because "it is not possible to see the opposite threshold" when established on the runway. When the pilot began a right turn to exit the runway at the midfield taxiway, a De Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter airplane that had initiated a takeoff roll from the opposite end of the runway impacted his airplane. The airport's runway does not have a parallel taxiway, and it is standard practice to back taxi to the departure end. The pilot in the Twin Otter reported that he transmitted his intentions to taxi to the midfield intersection and to depart from runway 10. He did not activate the pilot-controlled runway lighting but recalled that he had noticed that the pilot-controlled lighting had been turned on, and he taxied to the hold short line and did not see any airplanes. He back taxied to the approach end of runway 10 and maneuvered his airplane to take off. During the takeoff roll, the airplane's left wing struck the Panzl S-330. Neither pilot recalled hearing radio transmissions on the CTAF. The Twin Otter sustained substantial damage to the left wing spar. Both pilots reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with their airplanes 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 NTSB's narrative for the amateur-built DHC 6 TWIN OTTER final · quoted from the NTSB record
***This report was modified on June 4, 2020. Please see the docket for this accident to view the original report.*** The pilot in the Panzl S-330 airplane reported that he was landing and had turned on the airport runway pilot-controlled lighting about 5 miles before arriving at the airport and transmitted a 2-mile final radio call over the airport's CTAF. He landed the airplane and made "S" turns on runway 28 because "it is not possible to see the opposite threshold" when established on the runway. When the pilot began a right turn to exit the runway at the midfield taxiway, a De Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter airplane that had initiated a takeoff roll from the opposite end of the runway impacted his airplane. The airport's runway does not have a parallel taxiway, and it is standard practice to back taxi to the departure end. The pilot in the Twin Otter reported that he transmitted his intentions to taxi to the midfield intersection and to depart from runway 10. He did not activate the pilot-controlled runway lighting but recalled that he had noticed that the pilot-controlled lighting had been turned on, and he taxied to the hold short line and did not see any airplanes. He back taxied to the approach end of runway 10 and maneuvered his airplane to take off. During the takeoff roll, the airplane's left wing struck the Panzl S-330. Neither pilot recalled hearing radio transmissions on the CTAF. The Twin Otter sustained substantial damage to the left wing spar. Both pilots reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with their airplanes 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 for the Wingtip To Wingtip LLC PANZL S-330 from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Ground collision during taxi defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Aircraft › Effect on operation
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring other aircraft › Pilot of other aircraft
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 2,465 hours in all; 665 in this make and model; 34 in the last 90 days; 17 in the last 30 days; 2,421 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 29, 2019
- Medical certificate: BasicMed (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 752.3 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, April 9, 2019
- Maximum gross weight: 1,550 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540 G1D5 (piston); 1,752 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3A2 Tazewell TN at 11:05 pm
- Destination: 4A4 Cedartown GA
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.13 inHg
- Observation at 2:55 am from KPUJ, 12 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
The factual record for the amateur-built DHC 6 TWIN OTTER from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Ground collision during takeoff defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Aircraft › Effect on operation
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring other aircraft › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Seat: unk
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine 1: Pratt & Whitney PT6A (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Pratt & Whitney PT6A (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Sdp Llc
The flight
- Departed from: 4A4 Cedartown GA at 11:04 pm
- Destination: 4A4 Cedartown GA
- Flight plan: none
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 10 |
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 GAA20CA021.
