Dassault-Breguet Mystere Falcon 900 accident near Santa Barbara, California, June 10, 2007
On June 10, 2007 at about 9:15 pm local time, a Dassault-Breguet Mystere Falcon 900, registered N914DD, was substantially damaged in an accident near Santa Barbara, California (Santa Barbara Municipal Apt airport). It was an executive or corporate flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 15 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 erroneous gross weight calculation and improper trim setting by the captain, which resulted in the airplane's failure to rotate at Vr as expected and the captain's decision to perform to a high speed aborted takeoff.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 10, 2007 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Santa Barbara, California · Santa Barbara Municipal Apt · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 15 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Dassault-Breguet Mystere Falcon 900 · all Mystere Falcon 900s on the register
- Registration
- N914DD · no longer on the register · serial 80
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Executive or corporate flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The captain supervised the fueling and the weight and balance computations, while the first officer filled out the takeoff and landing distance (TOLD) card; a center of gravity (CG) location was not computed. The first officer entered a takeoff gross weight of 45,400 pounds on the TOLD card, with the V-speeds for that weight entered on the card (V1 116 knots and Vr 129 knots). Post accident calculations revealed that the actual gross takeoff weight was 46,481 pounds and the CG was 15.73% of mean aerodynamic chord (MAC), which was within the maximum gross takeoff weight and center of gravity limits of 46,500 pounds and 14 to 31% MAC, respectively. The V-speeds for the actual gross weight are V1 118 knots and Vr 131 knots. The crew set the stabilizer trim at -5.5 degrees, which is in the takeoff range, from -4.5 degrees to -7.5 degrees. The -4.5 degree position is labeled "AFT" and is the right position for aft CG locations, while the -7.5 degree position is labeled "FWD" and is the right position for forward CG locations. For the airplane’s calculated CG of 15.73% MAC, the right setting for the stabilizer trim should have been between -7 and -7.5 degrees. The captain said that everything was normal in the takeoff. The first officer called V1, followed by Vr, at which time he pulled back on the yoke, but with no response. When the speed was well into the upper 130-knot range he relaxed the yoke, then pulled aft again, and again there was no response from the airplane. The captain aborted the takeoff and the airplane came to rest 580 feet off the end of the runway, after impacting a berm. A post accident inspection of the airplane revealed that all systems were operating within allowable tolerances. Post accident simulator testing revealed that when configured for takeoff in the accident conditions, stabilizer trim set to -5.5 degrees and V speeds set for 45,400 pounds, a delay of 2 to 4 seconds was noted from the time an up elevator input was made to the time the airplane reacted in pitch. When the simulator was configured with the stabilizer trim set to -7.0 degrees and the V speeds set for 46,480 pounds, there was no delay in airplane response to elevator input.
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 14,000 hours in all; 400 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 40 in the last 30 days; 12,500 as pilot in command; 97 on instruments
- Last flight review: June 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Co-pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 15,000 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 8,000 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: June 1, 2006
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,569.9 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 2007; 96.8 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 46,500 lb
- Seats: 16
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Garrett TFE 731-5BR (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 2: Garrett TFE 731-5BR (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Engine 3: Garrett TFE 731-5BR (turbofan); 0 hours total
- Operator: Trishan Air
The flight
- Departed from: SBA Santa Barbara CA at 9:12 pm
- Destination: TPA Tampa FL
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 25, 6,055 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 1,500 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.88 inHg
- Observation at 8:53 pm from SBA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 | |||
| Passengers | 13 |
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 SEA07LA152.