Aviation Adv. MUSTANG PSID accident near Midland, Texas, April 29, 1986
On April 29, 1986 at about 2:15 pm local time, a Aviation Adv. MUSTANG PSID, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N51JR, was substantially damaged in an accident near Midland, Texas. 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
- April 29, 1986 · about 2:15 pm local time
- Place
- Midland, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aviation Adv. MUSTANG PSID MUSTANG PS, amateur-built
- Registration
- N51JR · registry record · serial 002
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE EXPERIMENTAL ACFT ON A TEST FLT SUFFERED AN ENGINE FAILURE DURING THE FINAL APPROACH TO LAND. THE PLT SAID THAT HE DID NOT BELIEVE HE COULD MAKE THE ARPT SO HE TURNED RIGHT TO AN OPEN FIELD TO LAND DOWNWIND. INVESTIGATION AFTER THE ACCIDENT REVEALED THAT THE DISTRIBUTOR DRIVE GEAR LOCK PIN SHEARED. NO OTHER MALFUNCTIONS WERE DISCOVERED.
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; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 10,968 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 10,968 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 110 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, April 17, 1986; 6 hours since
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ford 351 C.I. (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MDD Midland TX at 1:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 16, 3,975 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:47 pm from MAF, 6 miles away
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.
Other NTSB records under N51JR the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.