Amateur-built SIDEWINDER accident near Moriarty, New Mexico, March 12, 1988
On March 12, 1988 at about 7:15 pm local time, a amateur-built SIDEWINDER, registered N185SA, was destroyed in an accident near Moriarty, New Mexico. 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
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
- March 12, 1988 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- Moriarty, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SIDEWINDER
- Registration
- N185SA · no longer on the register · serial 212378
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WITNESSES HEARD THE ACFT ENG SOUND INCREASE DRAMATICALLY AS THE ACFT PASSED OVER A GEN AVIATION AIRPORT. THE ACFT WAS SEEN BY ANOTHER WITNESS AT LOW ATL, ESTIMATED TO BE ABOUT 200 FT, AS THE NOSE PITCHED UP. THE ACFT THEN ENTERED A SPIN AND IMPACTED THE GROUND. THE INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE WOODEN PROPELLER HAD SEPARATED IN FLIGHT AND IT WAS LATER FOUND NEAR WHERE THE FIRST WITNESS HEARD THE ENG SOUND INCREASE. EXAMINATION OF THE PROP SHOW ALL THE BOLTS THAT SECURE THE PROP TO THE CRANKSHAFT WERE SHEARED. THE EXAMINATION FURTHER REVEALED THAT THERE WAS NO REINFORCING PLATE BETWEEN THE BOLT HEADS AND THE WOODEN PROP HUB, ONLY THE FRONT SPINNER BULKHEAD. THE FRONT SPINNER BULKHEAD SHOWED WEAR AS DID THE BOLT HOLES IN THE PROP HUB.
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
- Flight time: 235 hours in all; 85 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 16 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 85 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 85 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,550 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RTN Raton NM
- Destination: TCS Truth Or Conseq NM
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 20 knots
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 50°F (10°C), dew point 10°F (-12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:42 pm from LVS, 62 miles away
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.