Amateur-built DAPHNE/SDIA accident near Akron, Ohio, May 31, 1986
On May 31, 1986 at about 5:18 pm local time, a amateur-built DAPHNE/SDIA, registered N961Z, was destroyed in an accident near Akron, Ohio (Akron Fulton airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 31, 1986 · about 5:18 pm local time
- Place
- Akron, Ohio · Akron Fulton · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built DAPHNE/SDIA DAPHNE/SDI
- Registration
- N961Z · no longer on the register · serial 2
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED SPIRALING TO THE LEFT FROM 500 FT AGL AFTER TAKEOFF. THE SPIRAL CONTINUED UNTIL THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH A COMMERCIAL BLDG. BASED ON THE AUTOPSY REPORT THE PLT DIED OF NATURAL CAUSES DECLARED TO BE CARDIOVASCULAR COLLAPSE. THE ACFT WRECKAGE REVEALED NO SIGNS OF MALFUNCTION OR DEFECTS OF A CAUSAL NATURE.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 1,878 hours in all; 779 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 1,847 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 24, 1986; 3 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,350 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-85-8 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AKR Akron OH at 5:10 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 6,004 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from CAK, 7 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.