KEARNEYSVILLE, W.Va. — The National Transportation Safety Board has released more information about a single-engine plane crash near Middleway in Jefferson County first reported by the Panhandle News Network the afternoon it happened three weeks ago.
A preliminary report from the NTSB lays out the details:
On July 23, 2026, at 1440 eastern daylight time, an American AA-1, N6132L, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Kearneysville, West Virginia.
The pilot and pilot-rated passenger were seriously injured. The airplane was being operated as a Part 91 personal flight.
A review of ADS-B data showed that the airplane departed from Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport (MRB), Martinsburg, West Virginia at 1345 and proceed about 20nm south where it performed a series of maneuvers before flying back toward MRB.
During a post-accident interview, the pilot stated that while he was descending the airplane from 3,000 ft to 1,500 ft to enter the airport traffic pattern, the engine suddenly lost all power.
Unable to reach the airport, he elected to make an emergency landing in a field about 5 nm south of MRB.
During the forced landing, the airplane’s right wing and engine separated from the fuselage. The fuselage, left wing, and empennage were substantially damaged.
The wreckage was recovered and retained for further examination.