Titan Tornado accident near Bath, Pennsylvania, June 23, 2005
On June 23, 2005 at about 8:13 pm local time, a Titan Tornado, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered UNREG, was destroyed in an accident near Bath, Pennsylvania (None airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot/owner's failure to maintain adequate airspeed following a loss of engine power, which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin. Factors in the accident were the stripped spark plug threads, and an inadequate preflight inspection by the pilot/owner.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 23, 2005 · about 8:13 pm local time
- Place
- Bath, Pennsylvania · None · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Titan Tornado, amateur-built
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register · serial T00503S0HK0375
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot owner completed a preflight inspection of his unregistered, homebuilt airplane, and departed from the airstrip. The rotation and takeoff were at their customary points on the strip, and the airplane climbed on a "normal gradient." About 400 feet above ground level, the engine "burbled," and then the airplane "rocked a little" in the pitch and roll axis. The engine continued the burbling sound as it ran, and the airplane continued flying for 10 to 12 seconds before it "fell off on the left wing," descending almost vertically to the ground. Examination of the two-cylinder engine revealed that the forward spark plug of the rear cylinder was still attached to its ignition lead, but the plug was not installed, and hung next to the cylinder. The spark plug remained completely intact. Examination of the corresponding cast aluminum spark plug hole revealed stripped threads. The plug was reinserted into the hole, moved "side to side," and then withdrawn from the hole by hand. The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single engine land. His most recent application for a medical certificate was denied 16 years before the accident for "Administrative or Legal" reasons. The pilot reported 110 hours of total flight experience on that date.
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
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 110 hours in all
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 200 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Hirth (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: NONE Moore Township NJ at 8:10 pm
- Destination: NONE
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,500 ft
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.11 inHg
- Observation at 7:51 pm from ABE, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under UNREG the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.