Aviat A-1A accident near Visalia, California, April 20, 2004
On April 20, 2004 at about 1:00 am local time, a Aviat A-1A, registered N40AW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Visalia, California (Visalia 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 pilot's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed on final approach, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and a hard landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 20, 2004 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Visalia, California · Visalia · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aviat A-1A
- Registration
- N40AW · registry record · serial 1545
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane landed hard, ground looped, and collided with a parked airplane. The pilot was landing on an unimproved, unauthorized area of the airport. During final approach, an airplane taxied in front of him and presented a potential conflict. According to a witness, the pilot flared the airplane and the right wing dropped, "as though it may have stalled." The right wing impacted the ground and then the airplane returned to a three-point attitude. The airplane then ground looped and impacted an airplane parked on the ramp. Prior to the accident, the airport manager verbally informed the pilot that he was only to use the designated runways as landing areas.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 33,000 hours in all; 500 in this make and model; 100 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: March 21, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 525 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 15, 2004; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,890 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: VIS Visalia CA at 1:00 am
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 11,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 1:55 am from VIS
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 N40AW 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.