Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Rockwall, Texas 75087
Saturday, February 14, 1998 17:14 CST

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The pilot flew the airplane at a low altitude above the water surface. Witnesses observed the airplane at 2 to 3 feet above the water on the south side of the Interstate 30 headed westbound. Subsequently, the airplane turned south, and the left wing and wheel went down into the water. The tail of the airplane came up into the air, and the airplane sank approximately 100 yards offshore. There were no discrepancies reported or found during the examination of the airplane. The water surface on the south side of the bridge was light chop with no white caps. Local weather facilities in the area reported 10 mile visibility, with overcast skies at 8,000 feet agl.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance while performing low altitude flight over the water.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 2/14/1998
Event Day of the Week Saturday
Time of Event 1714
Event Time Zone Central Standard Time
Event City ROCKWALL
Event State TEXAS
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 75087
Event Date Year 1998
Event Date Month 2
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude
Event Location Longitude
Event Location Airport
Event Location Nearest Airport ID
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport Off Airport/Airstrip
Distance from airport in statute miles --
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation --
Weather Briefing Completeness Unknown
Investigator's weather source Weather Observation Facility
Time of the weather observation 1647 Central Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) 360
Weather Observation Facility ID TKI
Elevation of weather observation facility 586
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) 24
Time Zone of the weather observation CDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height 6000
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height 0
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Unknown
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling Broken
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) 0
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) 0
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 15
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) --
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 170
Variable Wind Indicator Unknown
Wind Speed (knots) 6
Wind Velocity Indicator Unknown
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) 0
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 30
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation Unknown
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury Fatal
On Ground, Fatal Injuries 0
On Ground, Minor Injuries 0
On Ground, Serious Injuries 0
Injury Total Fatal 1
Injury Total Minor 1
Injury Total None --
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All 2
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 513
NTSB Notification Source --
NTSB Notification Date Feb 14 1998 12:00AM
NTSB Notification Time 1800
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information IMAGE
Date of most recent change to record Dec 11 2000 10:46AM
User who most recently changed record dbo
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N95EW
NTSB Number FTW98FA127
Missing Aircraft Indicator N
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? --
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name IRENEUSZ
Aircraft Model RANS S-12
Aircraft Series Identifier RANS S-12
Aircraft Serial Number 0492199
Certified Max Gross Weight 75
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class U.S. Registered/U.S. Soil
Aircraft is a homebuilt? Yes
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 2
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Sep 19 1997 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 41
Airframe Hours 246
ELT Installed No
ELT Activated Unknown
ELT Aided Location of Event Site Unknown
ELT Type --
Aircraft Owner Name DONOVAN R. ARTERBURN, JR
Aircraft Owner Street Address 9104 PECAN DRIVE
Aircraft Owner City ROCKWALL
Aircraft Owner State TX
Aircraft Owner Country
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 75087
Operator is an individual? --
Operator Name
Operator Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? Yes
Operator Street Address
Operator City
Operator State
Operator Country
Operator Zip code
Operator Code
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? No
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation Unknown
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Personal
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event Yes
Departure Airport Code F46
Departure City
Departure State TX
Departure Country
Departure Time 1656
Departure Time Zone CDT
Destination Same as Local Flt dest & departure same, accident can occur anywhere
Destination Airport Code
Destination City
Destination State
Destination Country
Specific Phase of Flight Maneuvering
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Jan 2 2001 10:34AM
User who most recently changed record dbo
Since inspection or accident --
Event Location Runway Number and Location 0
Runway Length --
Runway Width --
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --