— Tailproof Report —
§1Aircraft identity
§4NTSB accident & incident record
§5ADS-B utilization analysis
§7Pre-buy questions
— Tailproof Report —
— Report+ —
2004 CIRRUS DESIGN CORP SR20S/N 1432
Generated June 3, 2026
AMBER — Review before pre-buy
This aircraft has 1 accident on record. No fatal or serious injuries reported. Specific findings warrant questions for the seller and attention from your pre-buy mechanic.
Source: FAA Releasable Aircraft Database (weekly bulk release), queried June 3, 2026.
One accident on record.
Accident 1 — May 14, 2016
South St Paul, MN(SGS)
Probable cause
The pilot's excessive nose high pitch attitude, which resulted in a tail strike during the landing flare.
NTSB determination — not paraphrased.
Summary
The pilot reported that during the landing flare the airplane impacted the ground in a slight nose high pitch attitude, which resulted in a tail strike. The pilot further reported that he taxied to the ramp area without further incident. A postaccident examination by the pilot revealed substantial damage to the rudder.
Key findings
Source: NTSB CAROL, queried May 30, 2026.
Counts shown with “+” are a lower bound. The most recent FlightAware AeroAPI lookup hit a per-aircraft cap (max-flights, max-pages, or one or more 7-day windows failed), so the actual count may be higher. Cached flights from prior successful lookups have been retained where possible.
Flights by month
Source: FlightAware AeroAPI, queried May 11, 2026.
Analyzed Dataset covers 200 flights from 2023-06-19 to 2026-05-10 (35 months). History depth may be limited — additional records exist beyond our fetch window.
Prop strike or hard landing proxy
High confidenceGap detected: 2025-09-20 to 2025-11-28
One or more potential indicators of a serious maintenance incident are present in flight logs: disruption to typical flight patterns followed by flight profiles consistent with test flights or maintenance ferry activities. These signals are not conclusive evidence of damage and can have benign explanations — a gap may reflect weather, inspection scheduling, or legitimate maintenance — but the post-gap flight signatures warrant asking the seller directly. Contact support for a detailed extract of flight records (automated report coming soon).
Specific signals: Post-gap signals detected: test flight ✓, ferry flight ✓, utilization dip ✓, non-home departure ✓.
Heavy training pattern not detected
Flight utilization is consistent with normal operations. Short-return flight density does not indicate intensive training use.
'Flown-to-sell' pattern not detected
Activity history shows consistent operational patterns without the dormancy-followed-by-spike signature.
Geo-contextual dormancy
Dormancy threshold exceededThis aircraft is based in MN — a moderate humidity with seasonal temperature swings climate. The longest recorded dormancy gap is 201 days, which exceeds the 120-day flag threshold for this region.
Seasonal temperature cycling — cold winters, warm summers — causes rubber seals and gaskets to harden and crack over time, especially in unheated hangars or tie-down storage. Moderate humidity adds mild corrosion risk to fuel and brake systems.
Inspect before purchase
Source: ADS-B flight history via FlightAware AeroAPI, computed 2026-06-03.
Bring this checklist to your inspection and ask for objective evidence in the airframe, engine, propeller, and logbooks.
Case-specific follow-up: May 14, 2016 (NTSB GAA16CA256)
Airframe and records
Engine, propeller, and systems
Operational readiness and decision gate
Logbook review. Annual inspections, 100-hour inspections, AD compliance, engine SMOH/TBO, and equipment service history live in the aircraft logbooks and are not included in this report.
Hands-on inspection. Compression checks, gear rigging, control surface play, and corrosion assessment require a qualified A&P/IA with the aircraft in hand. This report is the homework before the inspection.
Title and lien search. Verify ownership, encumbrances, and clear title through Aerospace Reports or your aviation attorney.
Unreported damage. Minor events that didn’t trigger an NTSB report may exist in the logbooks and aren’t visible here.
Every datum in this report is traceable to one of these sources. Disputes about an entry should be addressed to the source agency — we report what those sources publish.
This report is a research aid based on public records. It is not a substitute for a pre-buy inspection by a qualified A&P/IA mechanic. It does not constitute legal, financial, or airworthiness advice.
The presence of incidents does not indicate a problem. The absence of findings does not guarantee airworthiness. Aircraft history reports inform decisions — they don’t replace them.
Tailproof Report+ · June 3, 2026