Amateur-built VARI-EZE accident near Mariposa, California, August 22, 1988
On August 22, 1988 at about 7:00 pm local time, a amateur-built VARI-EZE, registered N707LT, was destroyed in an accident near Mariposa, California. 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
- August 22, 1988 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Mariposa, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VARI-EZE
- Registration
- N707LT · registry record · serial 391
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACFT OBSERVED TO DIVE INTO GRND. INVESTIGATION REVEALED INFLT BREAKUP AND SEPARATION OF CANARDS. EXAM OF CANARDS REVEALED MODIFICATION TO INCREASE CHORD IMPROPERLY DONE, ADDING EXCESS WEIGHT AFT OF CG AND MAKING COMPONENTS SUBJECT TO FLUTTER. ONE MOUNTING BOLT ON RT CANARD FOUND UNDERTORQUED. LOOSENESS PERMITTED FLUTTER INITIATION AT LOWER SPEED.
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: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 700 hours in all; 8 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 8 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, July 29, 1988
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-235-C2C (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 270° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 90°F (32°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.