Amateur-built STARDUSTER II AS300 accident near N. Las Vegas, Nevada, September 16, 2000
On September 16, 2000 at about 3:45 pm local time, a amateur-built STARDUSTER II AS300, registered N27CG, was substantially damaged in an accident near N. Las Vegas, Nevada (North Las Vegas Airport). It was an instructional 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
Failure of the right clip that attaches a spring to the tail wheel/rudder control assembly, which resulted in a loss of directional control and collision with a berm.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 16, 2000 · about 3:45 pm local time
- Place
- N. Las Vegas, Nevada · North Las Vegas Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built STARDUSTER II AS300 STARDUSTER
- Registration
- N27CG · no longer on the register · serial 999
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
On the landing rollout the airplane ground looped. The airplane sustained substantial damage after the right wing struck a downward sloping berm. The owner was receiving instruction in conventional geared airplanes. They had flown for an about an hour, practicing touch-and-go takeoffs and landings, on the morning of the accident. No discrepancies were noted with the airplane or landing gear. On the landing rollout the tail wheel began to wobble, and the airplane veered to the left. The landing gear system was inspected. Clips attach to springs that connect the tail wheel assembly to the rudder control. The right clip was broken, which allowed the tail wheel to caster freely. The pilot noted no discrepancies with the landing gear during the preflight inspection.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,716 hours in all; 8 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 2,536 as pilot in command; 1,505 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 607 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 6, 2000; 24 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,010 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental IO-470-F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: VGT at 2:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 12, 5,000 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 3 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 183°F (84°C), dew point 109°F (43°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:21 pm from VGT
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.