Premium research interface

The modern interface for aviation safety intelligence.

Search investigations, review source evidence, monitor watched reports, and trace long-term patterns from one calm, data-first workspace.

63k+
Reports indexed
1940-2026
Coverage
Recent
Last data refresh
Featured Report

Loading…

Loading featured report…

Loading…
Open Report

Safety trends by operating rule

Track fatal and non-fatal accident patterns across Part 91, Part 135, and Part 121 operations.

Loading trend charts…

Browse the aviation graph

Move quickly by aircraft, airport, operator, and time with indexes built for research, not wandering.

Last Data Update

By Decade

By Month

Aircraft Manufacturer

More manufacturers

Airports

More airports

Operators

More operators

About

Aviation safety reports, made easier to study

NTSB Reports is an independent research and search tool for public aviation accident and incident records. It brings NTSB aviation reports, structured fields, docket files, extracted figures, photos, videos, and update history into one searchable interface.

The goal is practical safety education: make it faster to find relevant investigations, compare similar events, review factual records, and understand the evidence behind probable-cause and preliminary reports.

The investigative work and source records belong to the National Transportation Safety Board and the published investigation record. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NTSB.

FAQs

NTSB Report

July 20, 2012 · Flight Design CTLS · N21ZA

Elyria, OH

Overview

Report Status
Final with probable cause
Event Type
Accident
Date
July 20, 2012
Injury Outcomes
No injuries (1 uninjured)
Location
Elyria, OH
Aircraft
Flight Design CTLS
Tail Number
N21ZA
Operator
Zone Aviation
Injuries
None
Aircraft Damage
Substantial
NTSB Number
CEN12LA676

The pilot reported that, on the day of the accident, he had accomplished three landings in the accident airplane and that he was pleased with these landings. Forty-five minutes after the last day landing, he took off for a night flight. During the first attempted landing, he misjudged the flare, and the airplane bounced. He subsequently performed a go-around and again misjudged the landing flare. The airplane subsequently bounced hard on the runway, which resulted in a flat nosewheel tire and firewall and right main landing gear damage. Although examination of the right main landing gear leg revealed several manufacturing defects that have since been addressed by the landing gear leg manufacturer, the accident was likely caused by the pilot's misjudged landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing and the subsequent right main landing gear damage.

NTSB Probable Cause

Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C

Full Narrative

On July 19, 2012, about 2200 eastern daylight time, a Flight Design GMBH model CTLS, N21ZA, sustained substantial damage while landing on runway 7 at the Lorain County Airport (LPR), Elyria, Ohio. The private pilot who was the sole occupant was not injured. The airplane sustained damage to the landing gear, engine mount and firewall during the mishap. The aircraft was registered to RAS Aviation LLC, Elyria, Ohio, and operated by Zone Aviation, Elyria, Ohio, under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The airplane was rented by the pilot for a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight, which was not operated on a flight plan. The local flight originated at an unconfirmed time. The accident was not initially reported to authorities and was discovered while investigating another incident that happened with this airplane. On October 17, 2012, about 1330 the airplane sustained minor damage while landing on runway 25 at LPR (CEN13IA024). In both instances, the right composite landing gear leg fractured. Regarding the July accident, the pilot reported that he was performing takeoff and landing practice. He performed 3 landings during the daylight and he reported that he was pleased with these landings. After a 45 minute break he took off again to perform night landings to regain night currency requirements. He reported that on the first night landing he misjudged the landing and bounced. He performed a go-around and came back in for another landing. He again misjudged the landing and "bounced hard". The airplane came back down striking the nose wheel. As the airplane came to a stop the pilot realized there was something wrong and upon de-planing, discovered a flat nose tire. He pushed the airplane from the runway and acquired a tow from ramp personnel. The damaged right main landing gear leg was retained for further examination. The main landing gear leg was made of composite material. The fiber reinforcements used in the composite construction included unidirectional glass fibers, glass fiber fabric, and basalt fiber fabric. Flexible plastic tubes extended the length of the legs enclosed within ribbed plastic tubes located near the leading and trailing edges of the leg. Foam filled space between the plastic tubes and a center internal cavity. The legs were manufactured in a mold with the split line at the leading and trailing edges. During the layup process, layers were placed in a mold half representing the upper half of the leg, and layers were wrapped around the internal tubes, foam, center cavity, and preformed layers. The mold was then closed with a mold piece representing the lower half of the landing gear, and the center internal cavity was pressurized during curing. Examination and sectioning of the landing gear leg showed wrinkling of the fibers resulting in their orientation being angled with relation to the surface rather than parallel to the surface. Additionally several layers terminated at the leading and trailing edges. The location of theses terminating layers corresponded with the location of longitudinal cracks found along the leading and trailing edges of the landing gear. As a result of the investigation, the manufacturer of the airplane was contacted regarding the landing gear manufacturing process. The landing gear legs were manufactured by a sub-contractor to the airplane manufacturer. The airplane manufacture conducted an audit of the sub-contractor and determined that there were some previous quality issues with regard to mold closing during the manufacture of the landing gear legs. It was reported that the landing gear manufacturer had recognized these issues and had implemented steps to reduce the risk of recurrence of these issues. The airplane manufacturer also conducted a search of part requests and difficulty reports related to the main landing gear. This records search showed 3 occurrences which resulted in complete collapse of the landing gear leg out of a fleet of 370 airplanes. All other reported landing gear leg fractures were discovered either during inspection after a hard landing, or during taxi operation when significantly reduced stiffness was encountered.

Flight

Event TypeAccident
Event Time22:00 EDT
Nearest AirportLorain County Regional Airport (0nm)
Runway07
Runway Length5002 ft
Runway Width100 ft
Flight Plan FiledNone
Aircraft FireNo
Aircraft ExplosionNo

Aircraft

AircraftFlight Design CTLS
Tail NumberN21ZA
Aircraft CategoryAir
DamageSubstantial
OperatorZone Aviation
Operating RulePart 91
Engines1
Engine TypeReciprocating
Engine DetailsRotax · 912 · Reciprocating · 100
Seats2

People & Injuries

Injury SummaryNo injuries (1 uninjured)
Fatal0
Serious0
Minor0
Uninjured1
Total1
Crew 1Age 55 · Third Class · None

Conditions

ConditionsVMC
LightNight
Wind70° @ 9 kt
Visibility9 sm
CeilingNone
Temperature / Dew Point68 F
Altimeter29.90 inHg
Observation Time01:53
Weather SourceWFAC

Appendix: Source Data