North American F-51D accident near Camarillo, California, July 15, 2007
On July 15, 2007 at about 3:14 pm local time, a North American F-51D, registered N51TK, was substantially damaged in an accident near Camarillo, California (Camarillo airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control during a go-around. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's lack of experience in the make and model of airplane.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- July 15, 2007 · about 3:14 pm local time
- Place
- Camarillo, California · Camarillo · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- North American F-51D · all F-51Ds on the register
- Registration
- N51TK · registry record · serial 44-63350
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was making his first supervised solo flight in the same airplane that he received 31.5 hours of dual instruction in the 47 days preceding the accident. The flight instructor who provided the training witnessed the accident and reported that the pilot performed a "normal" takeoff followed by a left pattern to runway 26 with a "normal tail low wheel landing." He noted that as the airplane made contact with the ground, the pilot "had not pulled his throttle back to idle, as the noise level of the engine appeared greater than idle." After rolling 50 to 100 feet, the tail appeared to rise slightly, indicating the pilot was applying slight forward stick to pin the airplane to the ground. This was followed quickly by the rapid lowering of the tail to the point where the tailwheel struck the ground with a "loud bang noise." The airplane then "leaped back into the air" and the pilot applied takeoff power. The airplane pitched nose high and rolled left to the inverted position consistent with a torque induced roll. The upper surface of the left wing contacted the ground first, followed by the propeller and the canopy. The instructor expressed the opinion that the pilot "failed to successfully execute a standard go-around procedure after experiencing unexpected flight due to the lowering of the tail prematurely with power still on after touchdown."
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,100 hours in all; 32 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Maximum gross weight: 10,100 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rolls-Royce V-1650-7 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CMA Camarillo CA at 3:08 pm
- Destination: CMA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 26, 6,013 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 29.95 inHg
- Observation at 2:55 pm from CMA
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under N51TK the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 SEA07LA196.