Amateur-built HI-MAX accident near Dixfield, Maine, November 5, 1999
On November 5, 1999 at about 8:26 pm local time, a amateur-built HI-MAX, registered N63307, was substantially damaged in an accident near Dixfield, Maine (Swans Field Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to obtain the proper touchdown point. A factor in the accident was the pilot's lack of experience in make and model.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 5, 1999 · about 8:26 pm local time
- Place
- Dixfield, Maine · Swans Field Airport
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built HI-MAX
- Registration
- N63307 · no longer on the register · serial 817
- 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 while landing, he became low on the approach and added power to correct. The pilot then 'cut' the power and continued the approach. As the airplane neared the ground, it hit a 3-foot high hill with the landing gear and flipped over on its back. This was the pilot's first flight in the homebuilt airplane.
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
- Flight time: 108 hours in all; 1 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 76 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 6, 1998; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 720 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Volkswagen 1600CC (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ME22 at 7:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 12, 2,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 20,000 ft; scat at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:48 pm from AUG, 28 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
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.