Amateur-built LANCAIR IV accident near Butte, Montana, May 8, 1999
On May 8, 1999 at about 9:30 pm local time, a amateur-built LANCAIR IV, registered N124GH, was substantially damaged in an accident near Butte, Montana (Bert Mooney airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper flare.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 8, 1999 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Butte, Montana · Bert Mooney · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built LANCAIR IV
- Registration
- N124GH · registry record · serial LIV-080
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he was practicing a short field approach with a high rate of descent. The pilot stated that he did not maintain sufficient airspeed to arrest the descent and the aircraft landed hard. The left main landing gear collapsed, and as the aircraft departed the side of the runway, the left wing collided with runway markers.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,620 hours in all; 99 in this make and model; 2,449 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 99 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 28, 1998; 99 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,500 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental TSIO-550-B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: BTM at 9:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 5,101 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 30 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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 N124GH the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.