Consolidated-Vultee BT-13A accident near Stevensville, Maryland, August 2, 1998
On August 2, 1998 at about 11:14 pm local time, a Consolidated-Vultee BT-13A, registered N550C, was destroyed in an accident near Stevensville, Maryland (Kentmorr Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot-in-command's failure to maintain aircraft control while buzzing a building.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 2, 1998 · about 11:14 pm local time
- Place
- Stevensville, Maryland · Kentmorr Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Consolidated-Vultee BT-13A
- Registration
- N550C · no longer on the register · serial 10798
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to witnesses, before the flight, at a local restaurant, the pilot told a waitress that he would fly by the restaurant and wave. The airplane departed the airport, initially flew west, then south, parallel to the shore line. At the marina, the airplane flew by at a low altitude, about 150-300 feet above the ground. It then made a sharp right turn, and the wings were perpendicular to the ground. The nose of the airplane dropped, and it immediately began to descend. It disappeared behind trees, and shortly afterwards, witnesses heard the impact and saw a column of smoke.
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
- Flight time: 1,000 hours in all; 30 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,337 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 16, 1997
- Maximum gross weight: 4,350 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-985 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 3W3 Kentmorr MD at 11:10 pm
- Destination: EZF Fredricksburg VA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 120° at 9 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:55 pm from ESN, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.
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.