Thorp T-18 accident near Riverside, California, March 28, 1987
On March 28, 1987, a Thorp T-18, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N26CK, was destroyed in an accident near Riverside, California (Riverside airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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
- March 28, 1987
- Place
- Riverside, California · Riverside
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Thorp T-18, amateur-built · all T-18s on the register
- Registration
- N26CK · no longer on the register · serial 003
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE ON A FLT TO PRACTICE AEROBATICS, THE PLT WAS FLYING AT 3500' WHEN HE FELT A COLD LIQUID ON HIS RGT LEG & NOTED THE ODOR OF FUEL IN THE COCKPIT. MOMENTS LATER, FLAMES ERUPTED IN THE COCKPIT. THE PLT BAILED OUT & THE AIRPLANE CRASHED ON THE SOUTHEAST SHORE OF LAKE MATHEWS. A POSTCRASH EXAM REVEALED MAJOR HEAT DAMAGE IN THE AREA NEAR THE PRIMER LINES. THE PLT RPRTD THAT THE PRIMER ASSEMBLY HAD LEAKED ON A PREVIOUS OCCASION.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,012 hours in all; 23 in this make and model; 31 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 832 as pilot in command; 227 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 1, 1986
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Perris CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°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.