Amateur-built STARDUSTER SA300 accident near Lakeland, Florida, March 18, 1984
On March 18, 1984 at about 11:00 pm local time, a amateur-built STARDUSTER SA300, registered N688, was destroyed in an accident near Lakeland, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were 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
- March 18, 1984 · about 11:00 pm local time
- Place
- Lakeland, Florida
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built STARDUSTER SA300 STARDUSTER
- Registration
- N688 · no longer on the register · serial 455
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE OWNER/BUILDER OF THE ACFT & HIS WIFE WERE FLYING AT APRX 800 FT AGL WHEN THE PLANE ROLLED TO A NEAR INVERTED ATTITUDE & ENTERED A DIVE. BEFORE ENTERING THE MANEUVER, THE PLT WAS OBSERVED WAVING TO FRIENDS & ACQUAINTANCES WHO RESIDED IN THE AREA. BEFORE RECOVERING, THE ACFT IMPACTED IN A NEAR WINGS LEVEL, 30 DEG NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE. NO EVIDENCE OF A PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND. THE DIVE WAS DESCRIBED AS A SPLIT-S TYPE OF MANEUVER. THE PLT'S WIFE, WHO WAS ALSO A RATED PLT, WAS PRESUMED TO HAVE BEEN A PASSENGER ON THIS FLT.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 6,000 hours in all; 175 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 175 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,929 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LAL Lakeland FL at 10:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 280° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:50 pm from MCO, 37 miles away
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.