Fox Aircraft Corp. PEREGRINE PJ-2 accident near Minden, Nevada, August 4, 1995
On August 4, 1995 at about 4:26 pm local time, a Fox Aircraft Corp. PEREGRINE PJ-2, registered N62PJ, was destroyed in an accident near Minden, Nevada (Douglas County airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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
a failure of the wing flap control system due to inadequate design, which led to an asymmetrical flap deployment during a critical flight condition and in-flight loss of control. A related factor was the lack of a split-flaps warning system.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 4, 1995 · about 4:26 pm local time
- Place
- Minden, Nevada · Douglas County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Fox Aircraft Corp. PEREGRINE PJ-2 PEREGRINE
- Registration
- N62PJ · no longer on the register · serial 001
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT WAS ON A DEVELOPMENTAL FLIGHT TEST PROGRAM. THE PILOT REPORTED A SPLIT FLAP SITUATION DURING THE GO-AROUND. WITNESSES OBSERVED THE AIRPLANE TURN ONTO A LEFT CROSSWIND, THEN BEGIN A RIGHT ROLL TO GROUND IMPACT. A PIN IN THE LEFT FLAP DRIVE WAS FOUND SHEARED. THE PIN WAS EXAMINED AND FOUND TO MEET THE MANUFACTURER'S MATERIAL SPECIFICATIONS. IT WAS DETERMINED THE PIN HAD FAILED DUE TO OVERLOAD SHEAR FORCES WHILE TORSIONAL AND AXIAL LOADS WERE APPLIED. THE FLAPS ARE DRIVEN BY A SINGLE ELECTRIC MOTOR WHICH ROTATES TWO INDEPENDENT FLEXIBLE DRIVE SHAFTS THAT ACTUATE THE RIGHT AND LEFT FLAP PANELS. THE SHEARED PIN BROKE THE CONTINUITY OF THE LEFT FLAP PANEL DRIVE STOPPING THE FLAP PANEL WHILE THE RIGHT FLAP PANEL WOULD CONTINUE TO EXTEND OR RETRACT. THERE WAS NO SYSTEM OR MECHANISM IN THE AIRPLANE THAT DETECTED AN ASYMMETRICAL FLAP CONDITION. TESTS OF THE FLAP SYSTEM REVEALED THE ELECTRICAL MOTOR IN THE FLAP SYSTEM WAS CAPABLE OF SHEARING THE PIN BEFORE A CIRCUIT BREAKER WOULD INTERRUPT ELECTRICAL POWER TO THE MOTOR.
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, military
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,922 hours in all; 14 in this make and model; 43 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days; 5,922 as pilot in command; 1,530 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 34 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, July 30, 1995; 24 hours since
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Ge J85-17A (turbojet); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MEV at 3:55 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 7,395 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:53 pm from RNO, 28 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.
Other NTSB records under N62PJ the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.