Ryan PT-22/ST-3KR accident near Mesa, Arizona, May 21, 1983
On May 21, 1983 at about 11:20 pm local time, a Ryan PT-22/ST-3KR, registered N721R, was destroyed in an accident near Mesa, Arizona (Mesa airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 21, 1983 · about 11:20 pm local time
- Place
- Mesa, Arizona · Mesa · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Ryan PT-22/ST-3KR PT-22/ST-3
- Registration
- N721R · registry record · serial 1840
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT DEPARTED WITH ANOTHER RYAN PT-22 AS A FLT OF TWO, IN FORMATION. TWO RATED PLTS WERE ABOARD THE ACFT. AFTER BREAKING FORMATION, THE ACFT WAS OBSERVED TO ENTER A SNAP ROLL AT APRX 2000 FT AGL. A WITNESS OBSERVED THE PLANE BEFORE IT CRASHED. HIS DESCRIBED OBSERVING A MANEUVER THAT ENDED IN A SPIN.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,900 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,779 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 10, 1983; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,860 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Kinner R55 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 60 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 97°F (36°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:48 pm from PHX, 14 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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 N721R the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number LAX83FA240.