Amateur-built PAZMANY PL-1 accident near Wrightwood, California, June 23, 1991
On June 23, 1991 at about 6:50 pm local time, a amateur-built PAZMANY PL-1, registered N4081K, was destroyed in an accident near Wrightwood, California. 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
FATIGUE FRACTURE OF ONE OF THE TWO PROPELLER BLADES CAUSED BY THE PROPELLER MODIFICATION AND THE NON-APPROVED PROPELLER-ENGINE COMBINATION. A FACTOR IN THIS ACCIDENT WAS THE TRANSMISSION WIRES AS AN OBSTACLE IN THE GLIDE PATH DURING THE ATTEMPTED FORCED LANDING.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 23, 1991 · about 6:50 pm local time
- Place
- Wrightwood, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built PAZMANY PL-1 PAZMANY PL
- Registration
- N4081K · no longer on the register · serial 1
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT WAS IN CRUISE FLIGHT AT ABOUT 5,600 FEET MEAN SEA LEVEL WHEN THE PILOT HEARD A LOUD NOISE FOLLOWED BY SEVERE VIBRATIONS. THE PILOT PULLED THE FUEL MIXTURE CONTROL AND ENTERED A POWER-OFF FORCED LANDING. ON SHORT FINAL, THE PILOT NOTICED WIRES IN HIS GLIDE PATH. HE MANEUVERED THE AIRCRAFT UNDER THE WIRES. HE LANDED ON UNEVEN TERRAIN AND THE AIRCRAFT NOSED OVER. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT ABOUT 17 INCHES OF ONE PROPELLER BLADE OUTBOARD SECTION FAILED DUE TO FATIGUE. THE PROPELLER WAS CUT DOWN FROM A 74' DIAMETER TO A DIAMETER OF 68' AND PUT ON THE AIRCRAFT WITH A LYCOMING 0-320 E ENGINE. THIS IS AN UNAPPROVED COMBINATION AND THE PROPELLER FAILED AFTER ABOUT 20 HOURS OF FLIGHT TIME IN THAT COMBINATION. AN INDEPENDENT LABORATORY EXAMINED THE PROPELLER AND CONCLUDED THAT THE FATIGUE FAILURE WAS AS A RESULT OF A FORGING DEFECT. THE NTSB LABORATORY REVIEWED THAT REPORT AND DETERMINED THAT THE INDEPENDENT LABORATORY'S CONCLUSION WAS NOT SUBSTANTIATED.
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: 321 hours in all; 17 in this make and model; 5 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days; 194 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,630 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320E (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: L19 Bakersfield CA at 5:50 pm
- Destination: L12 Redlands CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 260° at 14 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 6:45 pm from VCV, 17 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.