Aerotek PITTS S-2B accident near Salt Lake City, Utah, August 31, 1986
On August 31, 1986 at about 8:10 pm local time, a Aerotek PITTS S-2B, registered N260PS, was destroyed in an accident near Salt Lake City, Utah (Salt Lake City Muni. #2 airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 31, 1986 · about 8:10 pm local time
- Place
- Salt Lake City, Utah · Salt Lake City Muni. #2 · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aerotek PITTS S-2B
- Registration
- N260PS · registry record · serial 5025
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT RPRTD THAT WHILE HE WAS PERFORMING AEROBATICS AT AN AIRSHOW, THE ACFT'S ENG MOMENTARILY LOST POWER DURING INVERTED FLT AT THE TOP OF A LOOP. HE WAS UNABLE TO COMPLETE THE LOOP. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT CONTACTED THE RWY IN A LEVEL ATTITUDE WHILE IT WAS STILL DSCNDG IN A HI SPEED STALL. IT BCM AIRBORNE AGAIN, THEN IMPACTED ON ITS RGT WING, CARTWHEELED & CAME TO REST AGAINST THE ARPT PERIMETER FENCE. WITNESSES SAID THERE WAS NO APPARENT ATTEMPT BY THE PLT TO ABORT THE LOOP. ABOUT 'TWO THIMBLES FULL' OF FINE SAND LIKE SUBSTANCE WAS FOUND IN THE SEDIMENT BOWL. NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 6,326 hours in all; 424 in this make and model; 100 in the last 90 days; 6,138 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 3, 1986; 11 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,150 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming AEIO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16, 5,700 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.