Bellanca 8KCAB accident near Oswego, Illinois, September 20, 1988
On September 20, 1988 at about 11:25 pm local time, a Bellanca 8KCAB, registered N50702, was destroyed in an accident near Oswego, Illinois. 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
INADEQUATE DESIGN INTHE MANUFACTURE OF THE PILOT'S SEAT WHICH FAILED DURING INTENTIONAL AEROBATIC MANEUVERS FOR WHICH THE AIRCRAFT INCLUDING THE SEAT WERE INTENDED.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 20, 1988 · about 11:25 pm local time
- Place
- Oswego, Illinois · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bellanca 8KCAB · all 8KCABs on the register
- Registration
- N50702 · no longer on the register · serial 616-80
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DRG AEROBATICS, THE ACFT WENT IN A DIVE, GAINED SPEED, LEVELED OFF & PULLED UP ABRUPTLY. DRG THE PULL-UP, THE RGT WING FAILED UPWARD & SEPD FM THE ACFT. THE ACFT THEN WENT OUT OF CTL & CRASHED. THE PLT WAS WEARING A PARACHUTE, BUT DID NOT BAIL-OUT; HE WAS FOUND STRAPPED IN HIS SEAT & THE DOOR RLS PIN WAS STILL IN PLACE. THERE WAS EVIDENCE OF UPWARD BENDING OF THE LEFT WING; BOTH HORIZONTAL STABILIZERS HAD EVIDENCE OF BEING COMPROMISED IN A DWNWRD DRCTN. AN EXAM OF THE PLT'S SEAT REVEALED THE TUBULAR ENDS OF THE SEAT-BACK FRAME HAD FAILED AT THE PIVOT POINTS (PVT PTS), WHERE THE SEAT-BACK WAS DESIGNED TO PIVOT FWD OVR THE SEAT PAN TO ALLOW ENTRY TO THE AFT SEAT. ATTACHING BOLTS AT THE PVT PTS HAD PULLED THRU THE ENDS OF THE FRAME. EVIDENCE OF OVERSTRESS SHEAR WAS FND AT THE RGT PVT PT AS IF THE SEAT-BACK HAD FAILED AFT. EVIDENCE OF OVERSTRESS SHEAR & TWISTING DEFORMATION WAS FND AT THE LEFT PVT PT. BELLANCA 7 & 8 SERIES ACFT HAVE HAD SVRL SEATBACK FAILURES AT THE HINGE POINT OR AT THE WELDED JUNCTION OF THE SEAT'S LOWER SIDE TUBE & SEATBACK SIDE BRACE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,312 hours in all; 333 in this make and model; 55 in the last 90 days; 22 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,343 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 29, 1988; 117 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming AEIO-360-H1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 1C5 Plainfield IL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:45 pm from DPA, 14 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.