Amateur-built QUESTAIR-VENTURE accident near Des Moines, Iowa, January 21, 1995
On January 21, 1995 at about 9:37 pm local time, a amateur-built QUESTAIR-VENTURE, registered N4QV, was destroyed in an accident near Des Moines, Iowa (Des Moines International airport). It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control during the emergency descent, resulting in a stall/spin. Factors were material defects in the material used to manufacture the crankshaft, resulting in the crankshaft fracturing after approximately 200 hours in service.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 21, 1995 · about 9:37 pm local time
- Place
- Des Moines, Iowa · Des Moines International · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built QUESTAIR-VENTURE QUESTAIR-V
- Registration
- N4QV · registry record · serial 43
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PRIVATE PILOT DECLARED AN EMERGENCY WHILE AT 16,000 FEET IN VFR CONDITIONS OVERHEAD THE 9,000 FOOT RUNWAY. DURING THE DESCENT HE STATED HIS ENGINE RAN ROUGH, THEN SMOOTHED OUT. APPROXIMATELY 4,000 FT AGL HE STATED HE 'HAD A MAJOR PROBLEM...COMING DOWN.' WITNESSES DESCRIBED THE AIRPLANE IN A STEEP DESCENT, THEN ENTERING A SPIN AT APPROXIMATELY 1,000 FT AGL. THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED 3/4 MILE SHORT OF THE RUNWAY. TESTING REVEALED THE CRANKSHAFT FAILED IN 2 PLACES, BOTH WITH AREAS OF FATIGUE CRACKING. THE FATIGUE ORIGIN WAS SUBSURFACE, THE SHAFT WAS MACHINED, NOT FORGED, AND HAD AN ESTIMATED 150 TO 200 HOURS IN OPERATION. NO OTHER DISCREPANCIES WERE FOUND WITH THE AIRPLANE.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,450 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: H Bouley(Pma) PMA-550-TTV (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
- Operator: Questair, INC.
The flight
- Departed from: PWK Palwaukee IL
- Destination: CYS Cheyenne WY
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 31R, 9,000 ft by 150 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 16 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 1,700 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:34 pm from DSM
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.