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ERA20CA241

2020-07-02 · Plattsburgh, New York, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport PBG

Current FAA registration · N526MA

Make / Model
AVIAT AIRCRAFT INC A-1B
Year of manufacture
2001 · 19 years old at event
Engine
LYCOMING 0-360-A1D (180 hp)
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20010323
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A6A04C

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot's loss of control of the airplane during a water landing after striking a boat wake, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage.

Factual narrative

According to the pilot, he overflew the area of intended landing to check for water depth, wind direction, and verify that it was a suitable landing area. While on final approach to the water, a boat crossed underneath the airplane. As the airplane landed on the water, it struck the boat wake, which resulted in the airplane "skip[ping]" over the water. When the airplane impacted the water again, the front float struts collapsed resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation prior to the accident. According to the pilot, he overflew the area of intended landing to check for water depth, wind direction, and verify that it was a suitable landing area. While on final approach to the water, a boat crossed underneath the airplane. As the airplane landed on the water, it struck the boat wake, which resulted in the airplane "skip[ping]" over the water. When the airplane impacted the water again, the front float struts collapsed resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation prior to the accident. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2020_ERA20CA241.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

Search this event elsewhere

External sources are reported, not agency: signal that something happened, not fact about what happened.

Related research

Matched on aircraft type or causal vocabulary (loss of control). All research papers