Brown ACRO SPORT II accident near Grand Haven, Michigan, October 19, 1986
On October 19, 1986 at about 9:43 pm local time, a Brown ACRO SPORT II, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N3045E, was destroyed in an accident near Grand Haven, Michigan (Grand Haven Memorial airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- October 19, 1986 · about 9:43 pm local time
- Place
- Grand Haven, Michigan · Grand Haven Memorial · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed and 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Brown ACRO SPORT II ACRO SPORT, amateur-built
- Registration
- N3045E · no longer on the register · serial 135
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACCORDING TO THE PILOT AFTER TAKEOFF HE LEVELED OFF TO GAIN AIRSPEED AND THEN ENTERED A 60 DEGREE PITCH UP ATTITUDE. THE PILOT STATED AT ABOUT 400 FEET AGL HE NOTICED THE AIRSPEED WAS LOWER THAN 'NORMAL'. SHORTLY THEREAFTER THE AIRCRAFT STALLED AND ENTERED A SPIN IMPACTING THE TERRAIN NEXT TO THE SAME RUNWAY FROM WHICH IT DEPARTED. WITNESSES REPORTED SEEING THE AIRCRAFT ENTER A NEAR VERTICAL CLIMB AFTER TAKEOFF, SPIN AND IMPACT THE TERRAIN.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,039 hours in all; 50 in this make and model; 929 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (invalid medical for flight)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,519 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 22, 1986; 30 hours since
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 3GM Grand Haven MI at 9:43 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 3,750 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 12 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Observation at 9:02 pm from MKG, 20 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.