Amateur-built POLLIWAGON accident near Ely, Minnesota, July 24, 1987
On July 24, 1987 at about 12:20 pm local time, a amateur-built POLLIWAGON, registered N48876, was destroyed in an accident near Ely, Minnesota. 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 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
- July 24, 1987 · about 12:20 pm local time
- Place
- Ely, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built POLLIWAGON
- Registration
- N48876 · no longer on the register · serial 1490
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE ON DOWNWIND TO THE AIRPORT THE AIRCRAFT DEPARTED LEVEL FLIGHT AND IMPACTED IN A WOODED AREA IN AN APPROXIMATE 80 DEGREE NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE. THE AIRCRAFT WAS DESTROYED AND THE PLT WHO WAS THE SOLE OCCUPANT, RECEIVED FATAL INJURIES. THIS WAS AN EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT AND WAS ON ITS INITIAL FLIGHT AFTER SOME MODIFICATIONS. ON JUNE 1, 1986, THE AIRCRAFT WAS INVOLVED IN AN INCIDENT WHICH WAS REPORTEDLY A RESULT OF OVERCONTROL. SINCE THAT TIME THE ELEVATOR AND HORIZONTAL STABILIZER HAD BEEN LOWERED TO A POSITION NEAR THE TOP OF THE FUSELAGE. THIS ALTERATION HAD NOT BEEN APPROVED BY THE MINNEAPOLIS MIDO.
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
- Flight time: 552 hours in all; 1 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, May 7, 1986; 1 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,250 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Volkswagen TYPE IV (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: ELO Ely MN at 12:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:00 pm from HIB, 48 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.