NTSB WPR24LA300 — 2024-08-31 · Mulino, Oregon, United States

Current FAA registration · N902ST

Make / Model: PACIFIC AEROSPACE CORP LTD 750XL
Year of manufacture: 2009 · 15 years old at event
Engine: P & W PT6A-34 (750 hp)
Seats / Engines: 2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date: 20090408
ADS-B equipped: Yes — Mode-S AC783C

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

N902ST PACIFIC AEROSPACE CORP LTD 750XL None

Probable cause & findings

The skydiver’s unintentional parachute deployment and subsequent entanglement with the airplane’s horizontal stabilizer.

Factual narrative

The pilot of the airplane reported that, during a skydiving flight, a skydiver’s parachute deployed early and became entangled with the tail. He felt the airplane pitch up and down violently before the parachute dislodged from the tail. The skydivers exited the airplane successfully and he was able to land the airplane without further incident. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the horizontal stabilizer. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

— Aircraft-Aircraft structures-Empennage structure-Horizontal stabilizer-Damaged/degraded
— Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Person-Effect on equipment

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2024_WPR24LA300.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.