Amateur-built VARIEZE accident near Orlando, Florida, December 8, 1985
On December 8, 1985 at about 4:30 pm local time, a amateur-built VARIEZE, registered N111VE, was substantially damaged in an accident near Orlando, Florida. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. 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 8, 1985 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Orlando, Florida · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VARIEZE
- Registration
- N111VE · no longer on the register · serial 1692
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT STATED THAT THE ACFT LOST POWER, & IN AN ATTEMPT TO RETURN TO THE ARPT, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH A LIGHT POLE & SOME ORANGE TREES, COMING TO REST ON A CANAL BANK. POST CRASH EXAMINATION OF THE ENG REVEALED THAT IT FAILED BECAUSE THE #4 ROD ASS'Y SEPARATED FROM THE CRANKSHAFT & PUNCTURED THE CRANKCASE.
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; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 300 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 2 in the last 90 days; 246 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,050 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotorway RW-100 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: MCO Orlando FL at 3:31 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,600 ft; clear
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:39 pm from MCO
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.