Amateur-built VOLMER VJ22 accident near Oldmar, Florida, December 18, 1983
On December 18, 1983 at about 7:40 pm local time, a amateur-built VOLMER VJ22, registered N15RK, was destroyed in an accident near Oldmar, Florida. 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
- December 18, 1983 · about 7:40 pm local time
- Place
- Oldmar, Florida
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VOLMER VJ22 VOLMER VJ2
- Registration
- N15RK · registry record · serial 3
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WITNESSES OBSERVED THE ACFT FLYING IN A NORTHERLY DIRECTION OVER TAMPA BAY AT A HEIGHT OF 25 TO 50 FT ABOVE THE SURFACE. MOMENTS BEFORE CRASHING, THE ACFT MADE AN ABRUPT DESCENT & PASSED UNDER A POWER LINE THAT SPINNED THE NORTHERN NECK OF THE BAY. THEREAFTER, A WING TIP CONTACTED THE WATER & THE ACFT CARTWHEELED BEFORE COMING TO RESTED INVERTED. THE PLT HAD BECOME INCAPACITED DUE TO A CEREBRAL HEMORRHAGE. HIS LATEST MEDICAL CERTIFICATE DATED 9/19/77 HAD EXPIRED. THE MEDICATION 'INDERAL,' WAS PRESCRIBED FOR THE PLT'S HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE WITH A DOSAGE OF 80 MG TWICE DAILY. THE USE OF 'INDERAL' IN EXCESS OF 100 MG DAILY IS SUFFICIENT FOR DENTAL OF A PLT'S APPLICATION FOR A MEDICAL CERTIFICATE.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 900 hours in all; 100 in this make and model; 50 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Unknown (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 170 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 17, 1983; 100 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 900 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Franklin 235 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: SPG St. Petersburg FL at 7:00 pm
- Destination: Tarpon Springs FL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,500 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:48 pm from PIE, 7 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.