Valentin TAIFUN 17E accident near Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, August 15, 1998
On August 15, 1998 at about 8:25 pm local time, a Valentin TAIFUN 17E, registered N17NT, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lake Geneva, Wisconsin (Grand Geneva airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the pilot's failure to maintain directional control and obtain proper climb rate during initial climb after takeoff. A factor was trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 15, 1998 · about 8:25 pm local time
- Place
- Lake Geneva, Wisconsin · Grand Geneva · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Valentin TAIFUN 17E
- Registration
- N17NT · registry record · serial 1046
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said that the airplane settled during initial climb into trees off the right side of the runway. Witnesses said that the airplane attained a steep nose high condition after liftoff, climbed to about 50 to 60 feet above ground level, prior to impact with trees. One witness thought the airplane encountered a stall prior to impact. Subsequent to the accident an examination of the airplane failed to reveal any pre-accident anomalies with the airplane or its systems.
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; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 337 hours in all; 90 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 158 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 288 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 7, 1998; 4 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,804 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Limbach 2000EBI (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: C02 at 8:25 pm
- Destination: ENW Kenosha WI
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 5, 4,100 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 5,500 ft; scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:45 pm from JVL, 30 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.