Amateur-built HP-19C accident near Boone, North Carolina, June 21, 1986
On June 21, 1986 at about 5:25 pm local time, a amateur-built HP-19C (glider), registered N4259Y, was destroyed in an accident near Boone, North Carolina (Boone 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
- June 21, 1986 · about 5:25 pm local time
- Place
- Boone, North Carolina · Boone · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built HP-19C
- Registration
- N4259Y · no longer on the register · serial 002
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE GLIDER MADE A STEEP NOSE HIGH TURN, STALLED AND CRASHED AFTER A PREMATURE TOW RELEASE AT APRX 150 FT AGL. WITNESSES SAID THAT THE GLIDER APPEARED TO BE BADLY CONTROLLED FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE TAKEOFF ROLL. AFTER THE STALL DURING THE TURN THE ACFT ENTERED A SPIN PRIOR TO GROUND IMPACT.
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: rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 63 hours in all; 8 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 7 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, April 15, 1986
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: None NONE (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:55 pm from HKY
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.