Amateur-built STEWART S-51 accident near Aguila, Arizona, November 28, 1999
On November 28, 1999 at about 6:20 pm local time, a amateur-built STEWART S-51, registered N151L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Aguila, Arizona (Eagle Roost Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The jamming of a main landing gear in its wheel well for undetermined reasons.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 28, 1999 · about 6:20 pm local time
- Place
- Aguila, Arizona · Eagle Roost Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built STEWART S-51 STEWART S-
- Registration
- N151L · no longer on the register · serial S-117
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot attempted to extend the landing gear in preparation for completing flight in his experimental, homebuilt airplane. The left and nose wheels locked in the down position. However, the right main landing gear did not extend out of the wheel well where it had jammed. Utilizing the emergency hydraulic extension system, the pilot attempted to lower the malfunctioning right main landing gear. The pilot was not successful, so he chose to land in a nearby plowed field with all of the landing gear retracted. As the airplane slid to a stop it impacted rough terrain, and the pilot was seriously injured. The reason for the jammed main landing gear was not determined.
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: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 9,607 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 5 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 79 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 18, 1999; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,257 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Chevrolet 502 CI (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 7E0 at 5:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from DVT, 57 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.