Amateur-built LOEHLE AVIATION 5151 accident near Osceola, Arkansas, October 10, 1998
On October 10, 1998 at about 6:45 pm local time, a amateur-built LOEHLE AVIATION 5151, registered N81029, was destroyed in an accident near Osceola, Arkansas (Osceola Municipal 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
The pilot's failure to maintain aircraft control due to incapacitation as a result of hypertensive arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 1998 · about 6:45 pm local time
- Place
- Osceola, Arkansas · Osceola Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built LOEHLE AVIATION 5151 LOEHLE AVI
- Registration
- N81029 · no longer on the register · serial 868-2138
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The amateur-built experimental airplane impacted the ground following a loss of control while maneuvering. About 10 minutes after a witness observed the single-seat airplane make a normal takeoff, he observed the airplane in a left descending turn. The airplane continued in this attitude until the left wing tip struck the ground in a plowed field. Although the forward section of the fuselage was demolished, the rear section, including the pilot's seat, remained intact. The pilot was found still belted in the seat; he displayed no outward evidence of traumatic injury, but was unresponsive. He was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead following resuscitative efforts. The autopsy report listed the pilot's cause of death as hypertensive arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Additional autopsy findings included a mediastinal mass, enlarged thyroid, firm fibrotic liver, enlarged spleen, and no evidence of significant trauma. The pilot applied for an FAA medical certificate on November 21, 1996, and the application was denied due to his medical history, which included coronary artery bypass surgery and abdominal aorta graft replacement.
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
- Flight time: 58 hours in all; 24 in this make and model; 18 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 43 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotax 503 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 7M4 AR at 6:35 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 19, 3,800 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 345° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 66°F (19°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.
Other NTSB records under N81029 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.