Amateur-built VARI- EZE accident near Rio Linda, California, June 25, 1985
On June 25, 1985 at about 9:00 pm local time, a amateur-built VARI- EZE, registered N84JR, was destroyed in an accident near Rio Linda, California (Rio Linda airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- June 25, 1985 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Rio Linda, California · Rio Linda · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VARI- EZE
- Registration
- N84JR · no longer on the register · serial 161
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AS THE ACFT BEGAN ITS' CLIMB, AFTER TAKEOFF, THE CANOPY PARTIALLY OPENED. THE PILOT LOST CONTROL OF THE AIRCRAFT AS HE ATTEMPTED TO RELATCH THE CANOPY. THE ACFT TURNED OFF ITS PREVIOUS FLIGHT PATH AND COLLIDED WITH A PARKED ACFT AND TRUCK.
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: 523 hours in all; 16 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 469 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 70 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 70 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 900 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming 0320 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: Q94 Rio Linda CA at 2:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 2, 2,620 ft by 42 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 35 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:55 pm from MCC, 2 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.
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.