Amateur-built Long EZ accident near Santa Fe, New Mexico, June 24, 2005
On June 24, 2005 at about 4:00 pm local time, a amateur-built Long EZ, registered N84RW, was substantially damaged in an accident near Santa Fe, New Mexico. 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 inflight collision with a bird(s).
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 24, 2005 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Santa Fe, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Long EZ
- Registration
- N84RW · registry record · serial 997
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was cruising at 120 knots at 9,500 feet msl when a bird struck his airplane. The impact separated the propeller blades at midspan. One or both blades struck the trailing edge of the right aileron, bounced off, then hit the right vertical stabilizer, which also separated in flight. The pilot made an uneventful emergency landing.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,040 hours in all; 900 in this make and model; 75 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 1,040 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 1, 2003
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,700 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, November 1, 2004; 200 hours since
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-L2C (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AEG Albuquerque NM at 3:50 pm
- Destination: LAM Los Alamos NM
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 39°F (4°C)
- Altimeter: 30.22 inHg
- Observation at 4:00 pm from SAF
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.