Amateur-built SA-3A PLAYBOY accident near Bartlesville, Oklahoma, June 2, 1990
On June 2, 1990 at about 9:30 pm local time, a amateur-built SA-3A PLAYBOY, registered N434K, was destroyed in an accident near Bartlesville, Oklahoma (Frank Phillips airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
AN INADVERTENT STALL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 2, 1990 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Bartlesville, Oklahoma · Frank Phillips
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SA-3A PLAYBOY SA-3A PLAY · all SA-3A PLAYBOYs on the register
- Registration
- N434K · no longer on the register · serial 1
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WITNESSES IN THE AIR AND ON THE GROUND OBSERVED THE AIRPLANE TAKE OFF AND BEGIN A SHARP LEFT CLIMBING TURN AT ABOUT 200 FEET AGL. THE AIRPLANE STALLED, AND IMPACTED IN A NEAR VERTICAL ATTITUDE. ONE WITNESS OBSERVED ONE TURN BEFORE IMPACT. ANOTHER WITNESS REPORTED SEEING RUDDER INPUT PRIOR TO GROUND CONTACT. MOST OF THE PILOT'S FLIGHT TIME WAS LOGGED PRIOR TO 1971. IN THE SUMMER OF 1988 HE GOT N434K RECERTIFIED, WHICH WAS BUILT BY THE PILOT IN 1957, AND OBTAINED A MEDICAL CERTIFICATE. RECORDS DID NOT INDICATE ANY FLIGHT ACTIVITY SINCE 9/20/89, ALTHOUGH IT WAS REPORTED HE HAD FLOWN TWO LOCAL FLIGHTS DURING THE LAST 90 DAYS.
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: 345 hours in all; 192 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 313 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 192 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 20, 1989
- Maximum gross weight: 950 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Franklin YO-200-1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Destination: 5F2 Tulsa OK
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 35, 6,200 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 290° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:30 pm from BVD, 1 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 N434K 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.