Amateur-built BD-5B accident near Boulder City, Nevada, October 22, 1999
On October 22, 1999 at about 10:07 pm local time, a amateur-built BD-5B, registered N62765, was substantially damaged in an accident near Boulder City, Nevada (Boulder City Muni airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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's failure to secure an electrical wire terminal in the propeller pitch control circuit following a maintenance adjustment, which resulted in the propeller malfunctioning and going to a flat pitch. The flat pitch of the propeller produced a high drag which precluded the aircraft from maintaining flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 22, 1999 · about 10:07 pm local time
- Place
- Boulder City, Nevada · Boulder City Muni · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built BD-5B
- Registration
- N62765 · no longer on the register · serial 4425
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot of the amateur-built airplane took off and entered the traffic pattern. A witness heard the pilot announce his position in the pattern. About 10 seconds later, while the airplane was maintaining a level flight cruise attitude, the airplane began descending, and it turned toward the runway. The witness further reported that the airplane's descent rate increased and the pilot broadcast, "I've got a problem." The airplane appeared to descend at a 30- to 40-degree nose down angle. It impacted a berm about 1 mile short of the landing threshold. This was the first flight following the pilot's installation of the new propeller assembly. Prior to taking off, a witness observed the pilot make a wiring change to the propeller's pitch control electric drive motor. The change was intended to reduce the time necessary to vary the pitch through its full range of travel from 15 to between 7 and 8 seconds. The on-scene examination of the assembly revealed that the wire was disconnected, and the blade pitch was found about the 2-degree (flat blade) position, which would produce considerable drag in flight. No internal malfunctions to the propeller assembly were noted. The pilot, a retired airline captain, was not the builder of the airplane. He did not possess either a repairman or a FAA Airframe & Powerplant certificate.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 19,800 hours in all; 20 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 70 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 16, 1999; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 890 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Solar T62T-2A1 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 61B NV at 10:07 pm
- Destination: 61B
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 33, 3,850 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,600 ft
- Temperature: 178°F (81°C), dew point 79°F (26°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:56 pm from LAS, 16 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.
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.