Amateur-built VARI-EZE accident near Bowie, Arizona, January 2, 1984
On January 2, 1984 at about 7:20 pm local time, a amateur-built VARI-EZE, registered N1050G, was destroyed in an accident near Bowie, Arizona (Bowie airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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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
- January 2, 1984 · about 7:20 pm local time
- Place
- Bowie, Arizona · Bowie · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VARI-EZE
- Registration
- N1050G · registry record · serial 727
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DESPITE 2 WX BRIEFINGS FORECASTING MARGINAL VFR CONDITIONS WITH REPORTS OF ICING, THE PLT DEPARTED ON A FLT IN THE NON-IFR EQUIPPED ACFT. JUST PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT, TRANSMISSIONS BETWEEN THE PLT & ATC INDICATED THAT THE ACFT WAS IN A SNOW SHOWER BETWEEN CLOUD LAYERS AT 13,500 FT & WAS ATTEMPTING TO CLIMB TO VFR CONDITIONS. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE ACFT BROKE UP IN FLT & THE WRECKAGE WAS DISTRIBUTED OVER A 2 MI AREA. NO EVIDENCE WAS FOUND OF A MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION OR FAILURE PRIOR TO THE IN-FLT BREAKUP. A METEOROLOGICAL SUMMARY DETERMINED THAT ICING OF AT LEAST MODERATE INTENSITY WOULD HAVE OCCURRED FROM 6000 TO 14,000 FT. THE PLT HAD BEEN AWAY FROM HOME FOR OVER 2 WEEKS & HAD EXPERIENCED SEVERAL WX RELATED DELAYS IN THE PREVIOUS 2 DAYS. A FRIEND REPORTED THAT HE WAS SCHEDULED TO RETURN TO WORK & THAT THE PASSENGER(HIS SON) HAD TO RETURN TO SCHOOL THE FOLLOWING DAY.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 513 hours in all; 203 in this make and model; 28 in the last 90 days; 17 in the last 30 days; 340 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection
- Maximum gross weight: 1,150 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-F2B (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LRU Las Cruces NM at 6:00 pm
- Destination: MYF San Diego CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0, 3,900 ft by 80 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 800 ft
- Temperature: 39°F (4°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:51 pm from TUS, 75 miles away
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.
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 LAX84FA129.