Luscombe 8A accident near Selma, California, February 26, 2000
On February 26, 2000 at about 7:45 pm local time, a Luscombe 8A, registered N1544K, was substantially damaged in an accident near Selma, California (Selma airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The failure and separation of the right landing gear axle during taxi from landing for undetermined reasons.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 26, 2000 · about 7:45 pm local time
- Place
- Selma, California · Selma · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Luscombe 8A · all 8As on the register
- Registration
- N1544K · registry record · serial 4271
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
At the completion of a local area flight, the airplane owner-pilot made a normal (smooth) landing and taxied off the runway. Without warning, the right main landing gear axle broke and the gear collapsed. The airplane had been in operation since about 1947, and it was maintained on an annual inspection basis.
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: 430 hours in all; 157 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 430 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,446 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 10, 1999; 19 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,260 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental A-75 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 0Q4 at 6:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 10, 2,490 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 9,000 ft
- Temperature: 142°F (61°C), dew point 118°F (48°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:56 pm from FAT, 13 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.
Other NTSB records under N1544K 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.