Amateur-built CONCEPT 70 accident near Boynton Beach, Florida, February 20, 1996
On February 20, 1996 at about 6:00 pm local time, a amateur-built CONCEPT 70 (glider), registered N29BW, was destroyed in an accident near Boynton Beach, Florida (Lantana/County Park airport). 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
an engine loss of power and fire for undetermined reasons.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 20, 1996 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Boynton Beach, Florida · Lantana/County Park · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built CONCEPT 70
- Registration
- N29BW · registry record · serial 14
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated that during cruise the engine began to lose power and then quit. He then observed flames. Unsure if he would be able to land the plane he banked the motor glider right, ejected the canopy, released the seatbelt and bailed out. The aircraft entered a flat spin and collided with the ground. The wreckage burned.
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: airline transport pilot, flight engineer
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 5,200 hours in all; 150 in this make and model; 40 in the last 90 days; 22 in the last 30 days; 4,330 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 900 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 5, 1995; 105 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 875 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Rotax 447 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LNA Lantana FL at 5:55 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 3,488 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:53 pm from PMP
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 N29BW 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.