Amateur-built MINI COUPE accident near Nashville, Arkansas, July 21, 1984
On July 21, 1984 at about 10:50 pm local time, a amateur-built MINI COUPE, registered N937BW, was destroyed in an accident near Nashville, Arkansas (Howard County airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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
- July 21, 1984 · about 10:50 pm local time
- Place
- Nashville, Arkansas · Howard County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built MINI COUPE
- Registration
- N937BW · no longer on the register · serial MC143
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE BUILDER/OWNER/PLT HAD FLOWN THE HOME BUILT ACFT FOR ABOUT 10 MINS ON ITS 1ST TEST FLT WHICH WAS MADE A FEW DAYS PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT. ON THIRD FLT, HE TOOK OFF ON RWY 01, CLIMBED STRAIGHT-OUT FOR AWHILE, MADE A LEFT TURN TO X-WIND LEG & STARTED A DOWNWIND TURN AT APRX 600 FT AGL. AT ABOUT THAT POINT, THE ACFT ENTERED A SPIN, MADE APRX 3 TURNS & IMPACTED IN A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE. AN EXAM OF THE ACFT REVEALED NO PREIMPACT PART FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION. THE PLT HAD A STUDENT LICENSE & WAS ENDORSED FOR SOLO FLT IN CESSNA 150 ACFT. THE DENSITY ALT WAS APRX 2500 FT.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 93 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 736 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Volkswagen 1700 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: M77 Nashville AR at 10:48 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 1, 3,700 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 10,000 ft
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:47 pm from TXK, 35 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.