Valley Adventurers, Inc. ADVENTURER 333 accident near Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin, August 5, 1997
On August 5, 1997 at about 2:45 pm local time, a Valley Adventurers, Inc. ADVENTURER 333, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N323VA, was destroyed in an accident near Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin. 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
The kit manufacturer's use of inadequate material in construction of the airplane, his inadequate application of quality controls resulting in the debonding of the horizontal stabilizer. Factors were the total loss of the horizontal stabilizer, the elevator, the rudder, both wings, and a partial loss of the vertical stabilizer, and wing struts.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 5, 1997 · about 2:45 pm local time
- Place
- Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Valley Adventurers, Inc. ADVENTURER 333 ADVENTURER, amateur-built
- Registration
- N323VA · no longer on the register · serial 193
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane had been on display at the Experimental Aircraft Association's annual convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, about 14 miles north of the accident site, for several days prior to the accident flight. It was determined that no flights of the airplane had occurred in the intervening period between the arrival at Oshkosh and the accident flight. The flight initiated on the day of the accident was for the purpose of returning the airplane to Arkansas. While in-flight, the airplane suffered the loss of the horizontal stabilizer, elevator, rudder, both wings, and a portion of the vertical stabilizer. Subsequent to the accident an examination of the structure revealed insufficient material attaching the horizontal stabilizer to the vertical stabilizer. An examination of six other similar airplanes under construction found evidence of a lack of quality controls in manufacturing, technique, failure to follow published construction manuals and guidelines, and general oversight by the kit supplier/manufacturer. The kits were supplied and/or manufactured by single manufacturer.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 10,800 hours in all; 17 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 19 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, February 23, 1997; 19 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,346 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Chevrolet 7.5 LITER V-8 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OSH Oshkosh WI at 2:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 52°F (11°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 pm from FLD, 5 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.