North American SNJ-5 accident near Raton, New Mexico, August 25, 2001
On August 25, 2001 at about 1:30 am local time, a North American SNJ-5, registered N2686D, was destroyed in an accident near Raton, New Mexico (Raton Municipal/Crews Field). It was a personal 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
a nonmechanical total loss of engine power for undetermined reasons while performing an aerobatic maneuver, and an inadvertent stall. A contributing factor was the insuffieient altitude to effect a safe recovery.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 25, 2001 · about 1:30 am local time
- Place
- Raton, New Mexico · Raton Municipal/Crews Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- North American SNJ-5 · all SNJ-5s on the register
- Registration
- N2686D · no longer on the register · serial 91051
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Pilot-witnesses said the pilot was performing low-level aerobatics. As he pulled up into a near-vertical attitude he radioed, "My engine just quit." Smoke was seen coming from the engine cowling. The airplane appeared to do a tail slide, then it rolled left and nosed over. Witnesses surmised that the airplane stalled with insufficient altitude to recover. It struck the ground in a left wing-low, nose-low attitude. Wreckage was spread in a fan-shaped pattern. The pilot's wife (and his aerobatic partner) believed he was making a "yo-yo turn...essentially, a steep wingover." To test her theory, she later flew her airplane and performed several of these maneuvers. She found that she could cause the engine to quit by pulling up steeply, then pushing over into a dive for several seconds. Power would suddenly surge to 2,500 rpm. The pilot's wife surmised that the engine failed when he pulled up. As he recovered, the engine regained power and surged, and the resultant torque caused the airplane to roll. No anomalies were noted during the engine disassembly and inspection.
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, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 22,000 hours in all; 653 in this make and model; 73 in the last 90 days; 20 in the last 30 days
- Last flight review: November 8, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8,295 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 20, 2001; 6 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,225 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney R-1340-AN-1 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: RTN Raton NM at 1:25 am
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 77°F (25°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.12 inHg
- Observation at 1:53 am from RTN
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.
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.