Amateur-built ARESTIA GANADOR accident near Marana, Arizona, February 22, 1985
On February 22, 1985 at about 10:40 pm local time, a amateur-built ARESTIA GANADOR, registered N2JM, was destroyed in an accident near Marana, Arizona (Avra Valley 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 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
- February 22, 1985 · about 10:40 pm local time
- Place
- Marana, Arizona · Avra Valley
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built ARESTIA GANADOR ARESTIA GA
- Registration
- N2JM · registry record · serial JM4AG
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBSERVED TO LAND FAST FROM A LOW APPROACH WITH ITS CANOPY OPEN. THE AIRCRAFT THEN VEERED RIGHT, AND WENT OVER ON ITS BACK AT THE EDGE OF THE RUNWAY WHERE IT BURNED. ONE COUNTERWEIGHT HAD SEPARATED FROM THE PROPELLER HUB ASSEMBLY AND WAS NOT FOUND AT THE ACCIDENT SITE.
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; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 5,268 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 5,024 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 10, 1985; 12 hours since
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-C1C (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: E14 Marana at 10:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 3, 4,200 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 64°F (18°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.
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.