Taylor MONOPLANE accident near Walden, Missouri, May 8, 1982
On May 8, 1982 at about 2:30 pm local time, a Taylor MONOPLANE, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N32RA, was substantially damaged in an accident near Walden, Missouri (Noahs Ark airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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
- May 8, 1982 · about 2:30 pm local time
- Place
- Walden, Missouri · Noahs Ark
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Taylor MONOPLANE, amateur-built
- Registration
- N32RA · registry record · serial 1
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THIS WAS THE AIRCRAFT'S FIRST FLIGHT AS WELL AS THE PILOT'S FIRST FLIGHT IN THIS MAKE AND MODEL. IT WAS A HOME BUILT PLANE THAT THE PILOT HAD RECENTLY COMPLETED. THE PILOT TOOKOFF ON RUNWAY 15 WITH WIND FROM 190 DEGREES AT 16 GUSTING 24 KNOTS. DURING THE TAKEOFF ROLL, THE PILOT RAISED THE TAIL WHEEL AT ABOUT 35 TO 40 MPH. HE INTENDED TO HOLD THE PLANE ON THE GROUND UNTIL ABOUT 50 MPH, WHILE FEELING THE CONTROLS, AND THEN ALLOW IT TO LIFT OFF. HOWEVER, HE STATED THAT THE PLANE BECAME PREMATURELY AIRBORNE AT A SPEED OF JUST PAST 40 MPH. THE PILOT ATTRIBUTED THIS TO A GUST OF WIND. HE REPORTED THAT THE PLANE DRIFTED TO THE LEFT AND THE CONTROLS HAD LITTLE EFFECT DUE TO THE SLOW SPEED. HE LOWERED THE NOSE TO OBTAIN AIRSPEED AND GAIN CONTROL. HOWEVER, THE PLANE CRASHED ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RUNWAY WHEN THE LEFT GEAR AND WINGTIP STRUCK THE GROUND.
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
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instructor: instrument helicopter; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 9,375 hours in all; 121 in the last 90 days; 5,588 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: unk
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded; 0 hours since
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental A-65 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 06MO Walden MO at 9:30 am
- Destination: 06MO Walden MO
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 15, 2,950 ft by 30 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 16 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 160°F (71°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:00 am from MKC, 12 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.