Amateur-built FALCON XP accident near Montgomery, New York, June 11, 2000
On June 11, 2000 at about 7:30 pm local time, a amateur-built FALCON XP, registered N544AA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Montgomery, New York (Orange County Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was 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 control of the airplane while taxiing. Factors related to the accident were the gusting wind conditions and the pilot's improper weather evaluation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 11, 2000 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Montgomery, New York · Orange County Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built FALCON XP
- Registration
- N544AA · registry record · serial 600166
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While the pilot was taxiing, he realized that the wind was blowing from a direction behind the airplane and 'my indicator showed no froward air movement although I was doing 45 mph.' Dust and grass blew by the airplane, and the controls were being forced from behind. As the pilot made a 180-degree right hand turn on the taxiway to the ramp, a squall pushed the airplane sideways, lifted the right wing up, and rotated the airplane on the left wing tip. The airplane nosed over and came to rest inverted. The pilot estimated that the winds at the time of the accident were in excess of 60 mph. The winds reported at the airport, at 1454, were from 260 degrees at 8 knots, gusts to 18 knots, variable from 220 degrees to 280 degrees.
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: 841 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 3 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 740 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 313 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 13, 2000; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 503 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MGJ at 8:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 8 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:54 pm from MGJ
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.