Eric Vargosko SW-51 N551EV

Summary

On 10 April 2026 at about 21:32 local time, a Eric Vargosko SW-51 registered N551EV was involved in an accident near Iron Station, North Carolina, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was slightly damaged. No probable cause has been published yet; this accident is still under investigation.

Date

10 April 2026 at 21:32

Classification

Accident

Location

Iron Station, North Carolina, United States

Nearest airport

Lincoln County Rgnl (IPJ)

Coordinates

35.4721, -81.1732

Aircraft

Eric Vargosko SW-51

Registration

N551EV

Category

Airplane

Year built

2024

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA26LA169

1 person was seriously injured.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. The investigation is still open; a final report usually follows one to two years after the accident.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

On April 10, 2026, about 1732 eastern daylight time, an experimental amateur built SW-51 airplane, N551EV, sustained minor damage when it was involved in an accident near Iron Station, North Carolina. The front seat pilot sustained minor injuries, and the back seat pilot sustained serious injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The front seat pilot and owner reported that a new propeller had been installed on the airplane two days before the accident flight. The morning of the accident flight he was informed by the back seat pilot that flight testing with the new propeller had been accomplished. That afternoon they departed Gastonia Municipal Airport (AKH), Gastonia, North Carolina for a flight in the local area before landing at Lincoln County Regional Airport (IPJ), Lincolnton, North Carolina for fuel. He reported that they fully fueled the airplane and upon lifting off he noticed the ball in the slip/skid indicator was moving right and left. He informed the back seat pilot who took control of the airplane. The back seat pilot landed in an open field about 0.5 nautical miles from the departure end of runway 23 at IPJ. The airplane was retained for further examination.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.