Amateur-built NONE accident near Elkhart, Indiana, September 21, 1988
On September 21, 1988 at about 9:55 pm local time, a amateur-built NONE, registered UNREG, was destroyed in an accident near Elkhart, Indiana (Midway airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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
INADEQUATE AIRCRAFT DESIGN WHICH RESULTED UNACCEPTABLE AIRCRAFT TAKEOFF AND CLIMB CAPABILITY.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 21, 1988 · about 9:55 pm local time
- Place
- Elkhart, Indiana · Midway · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built NONE
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AIRCRAFT WAS DESIGNED AND BUILT BY THE PILOT INVOLVED IN THE ACCIDENT. THIS WAS THE FIRST TEST FLIGHT. ON FIRST ATTEMPT TO TAKEOFF THE AIRCRAFT GOT 12 TO 18 INCHES OFF THE GROUND. PILOT MADE SOME ADJUSTMENTS TO AIRCRAFT AND GOT AIRBORNE ON SECOND ATTEMPT. AIRCRAFT CLIMBED TO AN ALTITUDE OF APPROXIMATELY 15 FEET AND STRUCK LOWER TELEPHONE CABLE ON UTILITY POLES ONE-QUARTER MILE OFF DEPARTURE END OF RUNWAY.
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: 500 hours in all; 16 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 435 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotax 532 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 2C9 Elkhart IN at 9:55 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 2,600 ft by 140 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:50 pm from EKM, 6 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 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.