Amateur-built RV-8 accident near Menomonie, Wisconsin, August 21, 2005
On August 21, 2005 at about 4:00 pm local time, a amateur-built RV-8, registered N505DF, was destroyed in an accident near Menomonie, Wisconsin (Score Field). 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 pilot's decision to perform an aerobatic roll during takeoff, the low altitude, and his failure to maintain clearance from the crops and terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 21, 2005 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Menomonie, Wisconsin · Score Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RV-8
- Registration
- N505DF · no longer on the register · serial 81439
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The experimental amateur-built airplane was destroyed on impact with terrain following a takeoff from runway 27. Reports stated the pilot flew the airplane to the airport to give rides in it. After receiving their rides, the passengers watched the airplane depart. The passengers at the airport witnessed the airplane climb out, enter a roll, and get half way through the roll before the airplane descended below the tops of a corn crop. The recorded wind was 280 degrees at 10 knots gusting to 15 knots. Trees were obstructions listed for runway 27 and an irrigation system was listed as the controlling obstruction in the remarks for runway 27. The aircraft came to rest inverted in a cornfield. An on-scene inspection revealed no pre-impact anomalies. Federal Aviation Regulation Part 91.303, in part, stated, "Aerobatic flight. No person may operate an aircraft in aerobatic flight- ... (c) Within the lateral boundaries of the surface areas of Class B, Class C, Class D, or Class E airspace designated for an airport; (d) Within 4 nautical miles of the center line of any Federal airway; (e) Below an altitude of 1,500 feet above the surface; or ... For the purposes of this section, aerobatic flight means an intentional maneuver involving an abrupt change in an aircraft's attitude, an abnormal attitude, or abnormal acceleration, not necessary for normal flight."
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: 250 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 528.6 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, July 1, 2005
- Maximum gross weight: 1,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LUM Menomonie WI at 4:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 4,900 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,400 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.10 inHg
- Observation at 3:54 pm from LUM, 1 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.