Amateur-built Thorp T-18 accident near Franklin, Kentucky, October 11, 2007
On October 11, 2007, a amateur-built Thorp T-18, registered N515HS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Franklin, Kentucky (Welcome Field). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were 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 during the landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 11, 2007
- Place
- Franklin, Kentucky · Welcome Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Thorp T-18
- Registration
- N515HS · no longer on the register · serial S-505
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot of the amateur built Thorp T-18, performed a low pass over the turf runway in order to check for deer. The approach and touchdown were normal, but during the landing roll, the airplane became airborne again after crossing a "bump" in the middle of the runway. The airplane contacted the ground again and the pilot "overbanked, which brought the prop into ground contact." The propeller dug into the ground, and the airplane nosed over, resulting in substantial damage.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 17,500 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 116 in the last 90 days; 45 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 217 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 1, 2007
- Maximum gross weight: 1,481 lb
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BWG Bowling Green KY
- Destination: 35KY Franklin KY
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 11, 2,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 330° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 330 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 57°F (14°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.95 inHg
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.