Amateur-built MA-5 CHARGER accident near Hamburg, Pennsylvania, July 27, 1990
On July 27, 1990, a amateur-built MA-5 CHARGER, registered N96CS, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hamburg, Pennsylvania (Don'S Place Airpark airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
FAILURE OF THE PILOT TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE AIRSPEED, WHILE MANEUVERING, WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT STALL/SPIN. THE PILOT'S ABRUPT MANEUVER WAS A RELATED FACTOR.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 27, 1990
- Place
- Hamburg, Pennsylvania · Don'S Place Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built MA-5 CHARGER MA-5 CHARG
- Registration
- N96CS · registry record · serial 001
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
EYEWITNESSES REPORTED THAT SHORTLY AFTER LIFT-OFF, THE HOMEBUILT AIRPLANE MADE 'A STEEP PULL UP AND RIGHT TURN....THE NOSE DROPPED INTO A STEEP NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE AND THE PLANE ROTATED ANOTHER 360 DEGREES...' BEFORE IT IMPACTED THE GROUND. POST-ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF PRE-IMPACT 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
- Flight time: 342 hours in all; 55 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 604 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 121 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, May 24, 1990; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,870 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0, 1,800 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.
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 documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text 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 NYC90DHA02.