• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
General Aviation News

General Aviation News

Because flying is cool

  • Pictures of the Day
    • Submit Picture of the Day
  • Stories
    • News
    • Features
    • Opinion
    • Products
    • NTSB Accidents
    • ASRS Reports
  • Comments
  • Classifieds
    • Place Classified Ad
  • Events
  • Digital Archives
  • Subscribe
  • Show Search
Hide Search

First flight in homebuilt ends in crash

By NTSB · October 28, 2020 ·

The pilot had just completed building the unregistered experimental, amateur-built airplane.

During takeoff for the Kreling Supercat’s first flight from the grass airstrip in Three Rivers, Michigan, he failed to maintain the proper pitch attitude and adequate airspeed, and the plane experienced an aerodynamic stall.

The airplane hit the ground nose down just beyond the end of the runway, which resulted in substantial damage to the forward fuselage. The pilot was seriously injured in the crash.

The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain the proper pitch attitude and adequate airspeed during takeoff, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

NTSB Identification: WPR19TA009

This October 2018 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.

About NTSB

The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent federal agency charged by Congress with investigating every civil aviation accident in the United States and significant events in the other modes of transportation, including railroad, transit, highway, marine, pipeline, and commercial space. It determines the probable causes of accidents and issues safety recommendations aimed at preventing future occurrences.

Reader Interactions

Share this story

  • Share on Twitter Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook Share on Facebook
  • Share on LinkedIn Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit Share on Reddit
  • Share via Email Share via Email

Become better informed pilot.

Join 110,000 readers each month and get the latest news and entertainment from the world of general aviation direct to your inbox, daily.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Curious to know what fellow pilots think on random stories on the General Aviation News website? Click on our Recent Comments page to find out. Read our Comment Policy here.

Comments

  1. scott says

    October 29, 2020 at 9:10 am

    The conclusion is about as brief as saying sneezing causes cv-19.

    • John says

      October 31, 2020 at 6:45 am

      The ‘Probable Cause’ wasted no words, committed no micro aggressions, and was both PC and gender neutral. It committed no infractions punishable by viral SM outrage. We can infer “pilot error” without saying the dreaded words. Kudos to the author of the concise and non-offensive summary.

© 2025 Flyer Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Comment Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Writer’s Guidelines
  • Photographer’s Guidelines