Amateur-built MARSH 1 accident near Lone Pine, California, March 21, 1998
On March 21, 1998 at about 8:00 pm local time, a amateur-built MARSH 1, registered N166VP, was substantially damaged in an accident near Lone Pine, California. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's improper in-flight planning, misjudged terrain clearance, and failure to attain adequate altitude before attempting to traverse the mountain pass. Contributing factors were the high density altitude and the rising, mountainous terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 21, 1998 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Lone Pine, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built MARSH 1
- Registration
- N166VP · no longer on the register · serial 166
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot intended to fly his homebuilt airplane, with its 65 horsepower engine, in a westward direction over the Sierra Nevada Mountains. After departure from the 3,680-foot mean sea level (msl) Lone Pine Airport, the pilot circled the area to gain altitude. Eventually the pilot located a mountain pass and proceeded in a westerly direction toward his home in Tracy, California. The elevation of the underlying terrain began increasing faster than the airplane was climbing, so the pilot made a forced landing on the snow-covered mountainside. The accident site elevation is about 10,500 feet msl and is about 8 miles southeast of Mt. Whitney. In the pilot's completed report, he indicated that no mechanical malfunctions or failures were experienced during the accident flight in his experimental airplane.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 939 hours in all; 164 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 22 in the last 30 days; 870 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 84 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, November 9, 1997; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 850 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Revmaster 2100D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: O26 CA at 7:00 pm
- Destination: TCY Tracy CA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.