Amateur-built COOT/AMPHIB accident near Mendota, Illinois, August 26, 1985
On August 26, 1985 at about 6:30 pm local time, a amateur-built COOT/AMPHIB, registered N81KX, was destroyed in an accident near Mendota, Illinois (Gandpa'S Farm airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. 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
- August 26, 1985 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Mendota, Illinois · Gandpa'S Farm · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built COOT/AMPHIB COOT/AMPHI
- Registration
- N81KX · registry record · serial TT81
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT TOUCHED DOWN IN A BEAN FLD DURING A FORCED LANDING FOLLOWING A LOSS OF PWR ON TAKEOFF. THE PLT REPORTED THE ACFT HAD LOW PWR DURING THE TAKEOFF RUN, HOWEVER, HE ELECTED TO CONTINUE THE TAKEOFF AND MAKE A 180 DEG TURN BACK TO THE AIRSTRIP. ONCE AIRBORNE, THE PWR LOSS INCREASED AND THE FORCED LANDING ENSUED. INVESTIGATION REVEALED A RAG USED BY THE PLT AS AN AIR INLET COVER WAS NOT REMOVED PRIOR TO FLT AND SUBSEQUENTLY WAS INJESTED INTO THE CARBURETOR.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 487 hours in all; 9 in this make and model; 7 in the last 90 days; 388 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 93 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, July 30, 1985; 60 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,760 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-320-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 3,900 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from DPA, 40 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.
Other NTSB records under N81KX 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.