Luscombe 11A accident near Redmond, Oregon, November 13, 2004
On November 13, 2004 at about 9:15 pm local time, a Luscombe 11A, registered N1627B, was substantially damaged in an accident near Redmond, Oregon (Roberts Field). It was an instructional 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing roll. Also causal were the instructor's inadequate supervision and remedial action. Factors include soft terrain just off the side of the runway.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 13, 2004 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Redmond, Oregon · Roberts Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Luscombe 11A · all 11As on the register
- Registration
- N1627B · registry record · serial 11-133
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot/owner, who was sitting in the left seat, was taking instruction for the purpose of developing his proficiency to a point where the instructor pilot would endorse his log book for pilot-in-command operation of a tailwheel aircraft. The pilot had completed four landings on the first day he flew this aircraft, and had done one other landing on the day of the accident. On his second attempt, while trying to execute a three-point (full-stall) landing, he inadvertently allowed the main gear to touch the runway first, and then the aircraft bounced back into the air. It then touched down in a three-point attitude, but began to veer off to the left. The pilot corrected to the right, but as he tried to make the correction, the aircraft continued to turn toward the right edge of the runway. Ultimately he put in full left rudder and a significant amount of left brake in an attempt to get the aircraft realigned with the runway, but these inputs were not sufficient to correct the situation. As the aircraft got near the right edge of the runway, the flight instructor came on the controls in and attempt to regain control of the aircraft, but it departed the side of the runway and encountered soft terrain. Because the left main gear tire had gone flat as the aircraft was sliding sideways on the runway surface, when that wheel encountered the soft terrain, the aircraft rocked up onto the left main gear strut, and the wing contacted the ground. There were no brakes on the side of the aircraft that the instructor was sitting on. In his written report to the NTSB, the pilot stated that when the aircraft first veered to the left, he might have overcorrected. There was no indication that there had been any anomaly in the tail wheel steering or flight control systems.
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
Flight instructor
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 12,000 hours in all; 9,000 on instruments
- Last flight review: August 29, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 471 hours in all; 3 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 425 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,856 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 9, 2004; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,280 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470-E-185 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RDM Redmond OH at 8:00 pm
- Destination: RDM Redmond OR
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 10, 7,000 ft by 100 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 SEA05LA015.