Probable cause
The pilot's inadvertent contact with the propeller while hand propping the engine, which resulted in a fatal injury.
NTSB analysis
The commercial pilot was found lying on the ground under the nose of the airplane with a fatal head injury from a propeller strike. Normal engine start for this airplane required hand propping the engine. The airplane was found with the left wheel chocked, and the magneto, throttle control, primer, and fuel tank selector settings as expected for an engine start. It is likely that, during hand propping, the pilot inadvertently entered the path of the propeller. The Federal Aviation Administration advises pilots that hand propping should only be attempted with two properly trained people, and the pilot was alone when he was fatally injured.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN17LA135 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- Mar 20, 2017
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Vicksburg, Michigan
- Nearest airport
- Thrall Lake (7MI3)
- Highest injury
- Fatal
- Fatal injuries
- 1
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Luscombe 8F
- N-number
- N2007B
- Category
- Airplane
- Year built
- 1948
- Operating rule
- Part 91 (general aviation)
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
From the NTSB aviation accident database: N-registered aircraft, events since 2008, data through Oct 28, 2026. The file is published monthly, so the latest weeks are incomplete and recent records can change. The official source is the NTSB aviation investigation search. CheckAero is independent and not affiliated with the NTSB.