NTSB CAROL · Event
Event SEA98LA035
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot's failure to maintain a proper glidepath.
Factual narrative
On February 5, 1998, approximately 1455 Pacific standard time, a Bromley Steen Skybolt homebuilt aircraft, N55740, registered to/being flown by a commercial pilot, was substantially damaged during an undershoot and loss of control on landing at Stark's Twin Oaks Airpark, Hillsboro, Oregon. The pilot sustained minor injuries. No flight plan had been filed and visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The flight, which was personal in nature, was to have been operated under 14CFR91, and originated from the accident airport approximately 1450. The pilot reported that after takeoff he remained in the traffic pattern and that he "was too low on final approach and (the) wheels struck (the) slope leading to (the) end of (the) runway." The landing gear then collapsed and the aircraft skidded down the runway on its belly during which it slid off the west side of the pavement. The airport manager reported that tire marks from the aircraft were observed approximately 30 feet short of the paved physical end of runway 02. Runway 02 has a painted displaced threshold of 100 feet (north of its physical end). A witness reported that the aircraft bounced and then re-landed on the asphalt surface during which the left wingtip and propeller struck the ground. The aircraft then veered left off the west side of the runway and rolled down the dirt embankment upon which the runway is built up on, coming to rest in the mud. Winds at Hillsboro airport, located six nautical miles north, were reported at five knots and variable direction at 1450. The pilot reported that after takeoff he remained in the traffic pattern and that he 'was too low on final approach and (the) wheels struck (the) slope leading to (the) end of (the) runway.' The airport manager reported that tire marks from the aircraft were observed approximately 30 feet short of the paved physical end of runway 02 which has a painted displaced threshold of 100 feet (north of its physical end). The landing gear then collapsed and the aircraft skidded down the runway on its belly during which it slid off the west side of the pavement. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1998_SEA98LA035.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (loss of control). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2025 · Journal article (JAAER)
A Scoping Review of Aviation Loss of Control Inflight Research
Loss of control – inflight (LOC-I) contributes to aircraft accidents at unacceptably high rates. Significant industry efforts and research have aimed to improve LOC-I prevention, detection, and recove…
- SKYbrary (Eurocontrol) 2024 · SKYbrary article
Loss of Control In-Flight (LOC-I) — SKYbrary Knowledge Base
SKYbrary comprehensive knowledge-base entry on Loss of Control In-Flight — definitions, contributing factors, accident case studies (Air France 447, Colgan 3407), and prevention strategies.
- NTSB Aircraft Accident Reports 2022 · Accident report
Loss of Control on Takeoff in Icing Conditions — Citation 560XL
Cessna Citation 560XL fatal takeoff icing accident, March 2018. Investigation of a Citation 560XL loss-of-control takeoff accident in icing conditions.
- Semantic Scholar 2021 · Article (Aviation)
ANALYSIS OF GENERAL AVIATION FIXED-WING AIRCRAFT ACCIDENTS INVOLVING INFLIGHT LOSS OF CONTROL USING A STATE-BASED APPROACH
Inflight loss of control (LOC-I) is a significant cause of General Aviation (GA) fixed-wing aircraft accidents. The United States National Transportation Safety Board’s database provides a rich source…
- NASA NTRS 2021 · Presentation
Use of Design of Experiments in Determining Neural Network Architectures for Loss of Control Detection
Abstract—We describe empirical methods for selecting a neural network architecture to implement belief state inference on generic commercial transport aircraft.
- NASA NTRS 2021 · Conference Paper
Use of Design of Experiments in Determining Neural Network Architectures for Loss of Control Detection
We describe empirical methods for selecting a neural network architecture to implement belief state inference on generic commercial transport aircraft.
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