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Fatal Stall Test Accident in Eastern Utah (N900VA)

Westwater, United States of AmericaFlight

On February 7, 2024, a Hawker 900XP (registration N900VA) operated by Vici Aviation was involved in an aviation accident near Westwater, United States of America in flight. 2 people were killed. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The flight crew’s decision to conduct a post-maintenance stall test in an area of icing conditions, which resulted in wing contamination that significantly decreased the airplane’s critical angle of attack. This summary draws on records from the Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A).

Sourcesthe Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A)Primary reportUpdated 2026-06-11Data APIEditorial standards
Aircraft registered N900VA
Aircraft registered N900VA. Photo: Gulfstream3 / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

An aircraft crashed in eastern Utah after entering a flat spin during a post-maintenance stall test. Both pilots were killed, and the wreckage was heavily damaged by fire.

Flight Details and Accident Sequence The aircraft departed Grand Junction Airport at 1037 local time on a positioning flight to Tacoma. The crew was conducting a stall test following routine maintenance that included the removal, inspection, and reinstallation of wing leading edges and de-ice panels. The aircraft departed normally and entered a climbing right turn to the northeast, leveling off at approximately 20,000 feet mean sea level. During its final minute of flight, the aircraft entered a rapid vertical descent consistent with a flat spin and did not recover. It crashed in an uninhabited area in Westwater, eastern Utah, near the Colorado border. Both pilots were killed. The aircraft was mostly consumed by a post-crash fire and was highly fragmented, which prevented a complete and thorough examination of the airframe and engines.

Probable cause

The flight crew’s decision to conduct a post-maintenance stall test in an area of icing conditions, which resulted in wing contamination that significantly decreased the airplane’s critical angle of attack. Also causal was the airplane manufacturer’s lack of training and experience requirements for the flight crew to safely conduct the stall test, which resulted in an attempted remedial action that aggravated the aerodynamic stall and led to a loss of control from which they were unable to recover. Contributing to the accident was the flight crew’s failure to follow the test conditions regarding cloud clearance, altitude limit, visual meteorological conditions, and ensuring all external surfaces were free from ice.
Loss of control in flight

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