Bede Aircraft BD-10 accident near Chesterfield, Missouri, August 27, 1994
On August 27, 1994 at about 2:01 pm local time, a Bede Aircraft BD-10, registered N2BD, was substantially damaged in an accident near Chesterfield, Missouri (Spirit Of St. Louis airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the canopy lock pin design which allowed the pilot to receive a 'closed and locked' indication without the canopy lock pin being engaged. Factors were the pilots' intentional abort above rotation speed, the lack of developed takeoff and accelerate-stop distance performance data for the airplane in this flight regime.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 27, 1994 · about 2:01 pm local time
- Place
- Chesterfield, Missouri · Spirit Of St. Louis · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Bede Aircraft BD-10
- Registration
- N2BD · registry record · serial 0001
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE EXPERIMENTAL SINGLE ENGINE TURBOJET WAS DEPARTING ON A DEMONSTRATION FLIGHT. AFTER ATTAINING ROTATION SPEED (VR), THE CANOPY BEGAN TO OPEN. THE PILOT INTENTIONALLY ABORTED THE TAKEOFF, APPLIED HEAVY BRAKING, AND THE AIRPLANE DEPARTED THE RUNWAY END. THE RUNWAY USED WAS 3800 FEET LONG. A PARALLEL RUNWAY WAS 7000 FEET LONG. THE PILOTS' CALCULATION SHOWED REQUIRED RUNWAY TO BE 3110 FEET. THE CANOPY LOCK PINS WERE FULLY EXTENDED, EXTINGUISHING THE 'CANOPY OPEN' LIGHT, BUT HAD NOT ENGAGED THE LOCKING LUGS. A SUBSEQUENT REDESIGN LENGTHENED THE LUGS, WHICH PREVENTS THE LOCK PINS FROM EXTENDING WITHOUT ENGAGEMENT. THE LIMITED PERFORMANCE DATA AVAILABLE DOES NOT INCLUDE ACCELERATE- STOP DISTANCE, NOR IS IT AVAILABLE FOR ABORT ABOVE VR.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot, military
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,800 hours in all; 25 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 10 in the last 30 days; 3,100 as pilot in command; 80 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 300 hours
- Last inspection: approved inspection programme, August 17, 1994; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,700 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge J-85-J4 (turbojet); 0 hours total
- Operator: Bede Jet Corporation
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 8L, 3,800 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 2:16 pm from SUS
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CHI94LA288.