Amateur-built AA-5B accident near Dade City, Florida, April 14, 2001
On April 14, 2001 at about 10:30 pm local time, a amateur-built AA-5B, registered N81189, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dade City, Florida (Field Of Dreams). 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 inadequate recovery from a bounced landing, and loss of directional control which resulted in an in-flight collision with a fence during the go-around, resulting in a subsequent forced landing in a pasture.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 14, 2001 · about 10:30 pm local time
- Place
- Dade City, Florida · Field Of Dreams · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built AA-5B
- Registration
- N81189 · no longer on the register · serial AA5B0453
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated that he was on final to land on runway 26, and during the landing the airplane bounced and went to the left. He said he attempted to execute a go-around but the aircraft went through a plastic fence which lined the runway and ceased climbing, so he set it down in a pasture. The pilot said that the wings and horizontal stabilizers were damaged as a result of the accident, and prior to the accident, there had been no mechanical failure or malfunction to the aircraft or any of its systems.
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: 130 hours in all; 23 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 63 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,803 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 6, 2001; 22 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,400 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A4K (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PIE St. Petersburg FL at 10:00 pm
- Destination: Dade City FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 2,500 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 1,800 ft
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 30.03 inHg
- Observation at 10:53 pm from BKV, 21 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 N81189 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.