Quicksilver MX accident near Elwin, Illinois, November 5, 1983
On November 5, 1983 at about 11:05 pm local time, a Quicksilver MX (ultralight), an amateur-built aircraft,, registered UNREG, was destroyed in an accident near Elwin, Illinois. It was a personal flight under ultralight rules (Part 103). 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
- November 5, 1983 · about 11:05 pm local time
- Place
- Elwin, Illinois · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Quicksilver MX, amateur-built
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register · serial NONE
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · ultralight rules (Part 103)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT POSSESSED A STUDENT PLT & 3RD CLASS MEDICAL CERTIFICATE. AFTER TAKEOFF, HE CIRCLED OVER THE AIRFIELD, THEN CLIMBED TO ABOUT 200 FT AGL. A HIGH SCHOOL CLASSMATE STATED THAT THE ULTRALIGHT THEN ENTERED A NOSE HIGH ATTITUDE & APPEARED TO ENTER A PRACTICE STALL MANEUVER. BASED ON WITNESS OBSERVATIONS, THE ULTRALIGHT ENTERED THIS MANEUVER FROM ABOUT 150 TO 250 FT AGL. THE ULTRALIGHT THEN WENT INTO A NOSE LOW ATTITUDE & CRASHED. NO EVIDENCE OF A PREIMPACT FAILURE/MALFUNCTION OF THE ULTRALIGHT WAS FOUND.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 73 hours in all; 30 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 58 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 150 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 400 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Cuyuna 430 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Elwin IL at 11:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 50°F (10°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.
Other NTSB records under UNREG the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.