Lancair Company LC41-550FG accident near Stafford, Virginia, February 23, 2006
On February 23, 2006 at about 4:35 am local time, a Lancair Company LC41-550FG, registered N400WX, was destroyed in an accident near Stafford, Virginia (Stafford Regional Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 4 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to execute the published missed approach. Factors included the night lighting conditions, low ceilings and fog.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 23, 2006 · about 4:35 am local time
- Place
- Stafford, Virginia · Stafford Regional Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 4 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Lancair Company LC41-550FG · all LC41-550FGs on the register
- Registration
- N400WX · no longer on the register · serial 41517
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot attempted a night Global Positioning System (GPS) instrument approach to an airport, but executed a missed approach. He subsequently requested, and flew an ILS approach to another airport. Radar and transponder returns confirmed the airplane flew the localizer course down to about 200 feet above ground level (agl). Weather, about the time of the accident, included calm winds, 1 1/4 statute miles visibility, light drizzle, and an overcast ceiling 500 feet agl. There were no witnesses to the accident; however, when a passenger's wife arrived at the airport minutes later, she noted "spots" of fog and a fog layer above her. She later noted that a police cruiser with flashing lights was lost in the fog when it drove out on the tarmac. The airplane's wreckage was located in a wooded area, about 300 yards left of the runway, 3/4 of the way down its 5,000-foot length. Tree cuts were consistent with the airplane having been in a 30-degree left turn. The missed approach procedure was to climb to 600 feet above mean sea level (400 feet agl), then make a climbing left turn to 2,000 feet, direct to a VORTAC and hold. There was no evidence of mechanical malfunction.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 395 hours in all
- Last flight review: September 1, 2004
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 57 hours
- Maximum gross weight: 3,612 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Teledyne Continental TSIO-550 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: INT Winston-Salem NC
- Destination: RMN Stafford VA
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 33, 5,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: at 0 knots
- Visibility: 1.2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 500 ft
- Temperature: 41°F (5°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.95 inHg
- Observation at 4:40 am from RMN
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 3 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number NYC06FA072.