Amateur-built STINGER accident near Blairstown, Missouri, April 4, 1991
On April 4, 1991 at about 12:45 pm local time, a amateur-built STINGER, registered N7XR, was destroyed in an accident near Blairstown, Missouri. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
AN INFLIGHT BREAKUP AFTER THE PILOT ENCOUNTERED WEATHER, LOST CONTROL INFLIGHT, & EXCEEDED THE DESIGN LIMITS OF THE AIRPLANE. A FACTOR WAS THE PILOT'S DECISION TO FLY INTO KNOWN ADVERSE WEATHER.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 4, 1991 · about 12:45 pm local time
- Place
- Blairstown, Missouri · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built STINGER
- Registration
- N7XR · registry record · serial FKA
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT OF THE ACCIDENT AIRPLANE WAS OBSERVED FLYING IN AN AREA OF FOG AND LOW VISIBILITY. THE AIRPLANE BROKE APART IN FLIGHT. BOTH WINGS WERE FOUND A QUARTER OF A MILE FROM THE FUSELAGE ABOUT 100 YARDS APART. A WITNESS WHO SAW THE AIRPLANE TAKEOFF REPORTED THAT HE LOST SIGHT OF THE AIRPLANE IN FOG BEFORE IT REACHED THE AIRPORT BOUNDARY.
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: 700 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 700 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 36 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 23, 1990; 36 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,036 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-200-A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: K84 Lee'S Summit MO at 12:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dawn
- Wind: from 300° at 8 knots
- Sky: broken clouds at 200 ft
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:55 pm from SLZ, 21 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.