Rockwell S2-R accident near Stuttgart, Arkansas, March 25, 1988
On March 25, 1988 at about 10:00 pm local time, a Rockwell S2-R, registered N5563X, was substantially damaged in an accident near Stuttgart, Arkansas. 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
- March 25, 1988 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Stuttgart, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Rockwell S2-R
- Registration
- N5563X · no longer on the register · serial 1763R
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING A POST MAINTENANCE TEST FLT, PIC EXPERIENCED A POWER LOSS SHORTLY AFTER LIFT OFF. THE ACFT CRASHED NOSE LOW, IN A LEFT TURN. THE ENGINE WAS THROWN CLEAR OF THE AIRFRAME. POST ACCIDENT INSPECTION OF THE PROPELLER BLADES INDICATED A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF POWER BEING DEVELOPED ON IMPACT WITH THE TERRAIN. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT THE PREVIOUS ENGINE PROBLEMS INCLUDED FUEL AND IGNITION. HE SAID HE THOUGHT THE PROBLEMS HAD BEEN CORRECTED.
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: single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,160 hours in all; 10 in this make and model; 35 in the last 90 days; 30 in the last 30 days; 1,900 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 1987
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Stuttgart AR at 9:55 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 170° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:50 pm from LIT, 40 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.
Other NTSB records under N5563X 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.