Lockwood AIR CAM accident near Ranchitos Las Lomas, TX
On January 29, 2024, a Lockwood AIR CAM (airplane) was involved in an accident near Ranchitos Las Lomas, TX. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: substantial.
- Date
- January 29, 2024
- Place
- Ranchitos Las Lomas, TX
- Aircraft
- Lockwood AIR CAM · Airplane
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Substantial
- Position
- 27.643°N, 99.111°W
- NTSB ID
- 20240129193717
Official records · CEN24FA101
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
Air traffic control records
- Memorandum For Record A�� Tower Damage: Document (PDF), on ntsb.gov
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn January 29, 2024, at 1441 central standard time, a Lockwood Air Cam, N315GW, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Ranchitos Las Lomas, Texas. The pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. According to family members, the pilot often conducted flights above the family ranch in his helicopter before he finished building the Air Cam in September 2023. Multiple witnesses reported that during the accident flight the airplane overflew the ranch headquarters, continued along a gas pipeline right-of-way to the southeast, and impacted a 197-ft MET tower about 192 ft agl (see figure 1). After the impact, the airplane rolled inverted and impacted terrain nose first. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and both wings. Figure 1. MET tower and accident site diagram. (Source: Texas Department of Public Safety) PERSONNEL INFORMATIONThe pilot completed a BasicMed course on March 3, 2023, and had an expired FAA third-class medical certificate dated April 25, 2017. His last medical application in 2021 listed a total flight time of 13,000 hours. Since September 2023, the pilot had flown the accident airplane 95.6 hours, with many of the flights conducted around the family ranch. WRECKAGE AND IMPACT INFORMATIONThe accident site was located in a flat, dry desert about 240 ft southeast of the tower. The debris path extended from the tower on a magnetic heading of 134° to the main wreckage. The outboard 9.5 ft of the left wing was foun
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a meteorological evaluation tower.
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Browse: Texas
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
