Amateur-built AA-1 accident near Batavia, Ohio, July 6, 2004
On July 6, 2004 at about 7:00 pm local time, a amateur-built AA-1, registered N5903L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Batavia, Ohio (Clermont County airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadequate preflight preparation which failed to assure the takeoff performance needed to out climb obstacles. Factors in this accident were the up sloping runway, the high density altitude, and airplane being loaded above it's maximum gross weight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 6, 2004 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Batavia, Ohio · Clermont County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built AA-1
- Registration
- N5903L · no longer on the register · serial 203
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot and passenger were departing from runway 22, a 3,568-foot-long, asphalt runway. The airplane stopped climbing after reaching an altitude of about 30 feet, and the pilot then realized that he would not clear trees located at the end of a soybean field, beyond the runway. The pilot attempted to land in the soybean field, however, the airplane flipped over. Witnesses reported that the airplane did not become airborne until the last third of the runway. The airplane's nose was pitched up higher than usual, and the airplane cleared the airport boundary fence by only 5 to 10 feet. The airplane was equipped with a 108-horsepower engine. A weight and balance calculation performed after the accident revealed that the airplane was about 100 pounds above it's maximum gross takeoff weight. In addition, the runway sloped upward, approximately 30 feet, between the respective touchdown zones of runways 22 and 4. The weather reported at an airport about 10 miles west of the accident site, included calm winds, and a temperature and dew point of 86 and 68 degrees F, respectively; which corresponded with a density altitude of about 3,000 feet. The pilot reported that the airplane's outside air temperature gauge indicated 33.1 degrees C (91 degrees F).
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 345 hours in all; 75 in this make and model; 24 in the last 90 days; 14 in the last 30 days; 230 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: December 12, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,500 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 19, 2003; 29 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: I69 Batavia OH at 7:00 pm
- Destination: I69 Batavia OH
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 22, 3,568 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.97 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from LUK, 10 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.
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.