Amateur-built BABY GREAT LAKES accident near Lebanon, Indiana, June 17, 1983
On June 17, 1983 at about 9:00 pm local time, a amateur-built BABY GREAT LAKES, registered N35JR, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lebanon, Indiana. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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 17, 1983 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Lebanon, Indiana
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built BABY GREAT LAKES BABY GREAT
- Registration
- N35JR · no longer on the register · serial 670
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED AND THE ACFT NOSED OVER AFTER THE ENGINE QUIT DUE TO FUEL STARVATION. THE ENGINE LOST POWER IN A STEEP CLIMB OF AT LEAST A 45 DEG ANGLE AND COULD NOT BE RESTARTED. THE FUEL FLOWS TO THE ENGINE BY GRAVITY. IN A STEEP CLIMB THE FUEL SUPPLY IS LOWER THAN THE CARBURETOR AND THE FUEL CANNOT REACH THE ENGINE. A STARTER WAS NOT INSTALLED.
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: 91 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 5 in the last 90 days; 57 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-290 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.