Amateur-built SEAREY accident near Grand Rapids, Michigan, June 10, 2000
On June 10, 2000 at about 2:55 pm local time, a amateur-built SEAREY, registered N89PJ, was substantially damaged in an accident near Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control when the airplane encountered high winds. Factors which related to this accident were the high crosswind, the wind gusts, and the submerged object.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 10, 2000 · about 2:55 pm local time
- Place
- Grand Rapids, Michigan · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SEAREY
- Registration
- N89PJ · no longer on the register · serial 10K196
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was taxiing his amphibian airplane north on the Thorn Apple River, near Grand Rapids, Michigan. The west bank of the river section he was taxiing up was bordered by gradually down-sloping bluffs. When the airplane got past the bluff- section of the river, it 'nosed into the water and the aircraft flipped, tail over-the-nose, coming to rest inverted.' After the airplane was recovered, the pilot noted damage to the step of the hull. The pilot thought the damage to be consistent with striking a submerged log. Examination of the airplane revealed the forward fiberglass hull, fore deck, and 'turtle' deck were cracked inward. No other anomalies were found. At the time of the accident, the winds reported at Kent County International Airport, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 11 miles west of the accident site, were 210 degrees at 16 knots gusting to 21 knots.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,193 hours in all; 41 in this make and model; 63 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 1,112 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 40 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 4, 2000; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,370 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotax 912S (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: GRR MI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 210° at 16 knots, gusting 21
- Visibility: 9 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:56 pm from GRR, 11 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.