William M Clapp CLAPP-SABERWING N100SW

Summary

On 7 December 2024 at about 16:27 local time, a William M Clapp CLAPP-SABERWING registered N100SW was involved in an accident near Valdosta, Georgia, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

7 December 2024 at 16:27

Classification

Accident

Location

Valdosta, Georgia, United States

Nearest airport

Valdosta Regional (VLD)

Coordinates

30.7686, -83.2712

Aircraft

William M Clapp CLAPP-SABERWING

Registration

N100SW

Category

Airplane

Year built

2019

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA25LA070

1 person was seriously injured.

A hard landing and subsequent gear collapse due to the pilot’s failure to securely close the airplane canopy and its subsequent opening on short final.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot was practicing takeoffs and landings and reported that while maneuvering through the traffic pattern, the canopy became partially opened. The canopy was equipped with two side latches and one main latch at the rear of the canopy. The right-side latch held the canopy partially secured until the final approach segment when it also released, and the canopy opened completely. The airplane subsequently nosed down and contacted the ground nose first just short of the runway whereupon the nose landing gear separated from the airplane and the main landing gear collapsed, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot was seriously injured. The pilot reported forgetting to lock the main rear latch to the canopy after opening it during taxi. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.