Amateur-built 301 accident near Nas Kingsville, Texas, June 25, 1983
On June 25, 1983 at about 7:30 pm local time, a amateur-built 301, registered N3239G, was destroyed in an accident near Nas Kingsville, Texas (Nas Kingsville airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people had minor injuries. 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
- June 25, 1983 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Nas Kingsville, Texas · Nas Kingsville · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built 301
- Registration
- N3239G · no longer on the register · serial 90950
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE HOME BUILT ACFT WAS BUILT FROM PARTS OF A NORTH AMERICAN SNJ-4 & BT-13. IT WAS MADE TO RESEMBLE A WW-II JAPANESE KATE BOMBER & WAS BEING USED IN A CONFEDERATE AIR FORCE SHOW TO SMIULATE LOW LEVEL BOMBING RUNS. BETWEEN PASSES, THE PLT MADE 90-270 DEG TURNS, SIMILAR TO CROP DUSTER TURNS. ACCORDING TO THE PLT, HE 'PULLED TOO HARD IN THE TURN ON A HOT DAY', ENTERED A HIGH SPEED STALL & CRASHED. HE REPORTED THE TEMP WAS 96 DEG.
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: 1,984 hours in all; 12 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 31, 1983
- Maximum gross weight: 5,800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: P&W R-1340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: not recorded
- Runway 3, 8,000 ft by 200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 3 knots
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,500 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:46 pm from NQI
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.