Amateur-built PRO TECH accident near Sebring, Florida, December 17, 1995
On December 17, 1995 at about 8:43 pm local time, a amateur-built PRO TECH, registered N2071H, was destroyed in an accident near Sebring, Florida. It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot-in-command(CFI) allowed the airplane's design limits to be exceeded which resulted in the overload failure and separation of the right wing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 17, 1995 · about 8:43 pm local time
- Place
- Sebring, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built PRO TECH
- Registration
- N2071H · registry record · serial PT1228
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was observed by witnesses flying between 500 to 1,000 feet towards Sebring Regional Airport, and was observed to start a shallow descent followed by an abrupt pull up. The right wing separated from the airplane and fell to the ground in two pieces. The airplane rolled right, pitched down and collided with the ground. Examination of components of the right wing by the NTSB Laboratory revealed that all fractures in the wing spar, skin pieces, and wing strut were typical of overstress separations.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,260 hours in all; 9 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 49 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, December 1, 1995; 9 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,550 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SEF at 8:35 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 100° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 30,000 ft; scat at 4,500 ft
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:54 pm from LAL, 30 miles away
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.