Amateur-built LANCAIR 320 accident near Marengo, Illinois, June 24, 1995
On June 24, 1995 at about 5:30 pm local time, a amateur-built LANCAIR 320, registered N3118J, was destroyed in an accident near Marengo, Illinois (William Rose Airstrip airport). 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
pilot incapacitation due to cardiac arrhythmia (heart attack).
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 24, 1995 · about 5:30 pm local time
- Place
- Marengo, Illinois · William Rose Airstrip · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built LANCAIR 320 LANCAIR 32
- Registration
- N3118J · registry record · serial 729
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
A WITNESS REPORTED THAT HE OBSERVED THE AIRPLANE DEPART THE AIRSTRIP ABOUT 2 HOURS BEFORE THE WRECKAGE WAS DISCOVERED. HE SAID THE AIRPLANE TOOK OFF ON RUNWAY 27 AND TURNED ABRUPTLY TO THE SOUTH, BEHIND A TREE LINE, BEFORE IT REACHED THE END OF THE RUNWAY. HE DID NOT, HOWEVER, OBSERVE THE ACCIDENT. EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF PREIMPACT MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION. ANATOMICAL FINDINGS OF A FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST WERE THAT 'THE PILOT DIED OF CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIA DUE TO ISCHEMIC HEART DISEASE AS EVIDENCED BY SEVERE CORONARY ARTERY ATHEROSCLEROSIS AND ENLARGEMENT OF THE HEART. THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT INJURY FROM THE AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT. THE AMOUNT OF BLOOD IN THE AIRWAY WAS NOT SUFFICIENT TO HAVE CAUSED ASPHYXIATION AND THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE THAT BLOOD HAD BEEN INHALED INTO THE PARENCHYMA.'
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: 1,040 hours in all; 39 in this make and model; 802 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 39 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection; 39 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,685 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-C2E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: Unknown
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 2,200 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:45 pm from DPA, 20 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.