Bellanca 8GCBC accident near East Moriches, New York, August 19, 1995
On August 19, 1995 at about 6:40 pm local time, a Bellanca 8GCBC, registered N86587, was destroyed in an accident near East Moriches, New York (Lufker airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 structural failure of the wing for undetermined reasons.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 19, 1995 · about 6:40 pm local time
- Place
- East Moriches, New York · Lufker · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 8GCBC · all 8GCBCs on the register
- Registration
- N86587 · no longer on the register · serial 4-74
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Witnesses stated that the pilot missed the banner pick up on the first pass, and returned for a second attempt. One witness stated that when the pilot missed the banner pick up again, and began to climb out the second time, '...a portion of the right wing folded back.' The witness reported that the airplane rolled to the right, and the nose dropped below the horizon. The airplane impacted terrain, and a postcrash fire ensued. Winds were reported to be out of the northeast at 10 knots, with gusts to 20 knots. Postaccident examination of the wing was complicated by fire damage; however, the USDA Forest Products Laboratory examination revealed that the wooden spar failure was '...caused by a force applied in an upward direction...' and that there was '...no apparent [preimpact] problem with the quality of the wooden material....'
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,400 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 250 in the last 90 days; 150 in the last 30 days; 350 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,710 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 19, 1995; 80 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,150 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-C2A (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 4NY7
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 2,300 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 10 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; clear
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from HTO, 25 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.