Amateur-built BD-4 accident near Cedar Rapids, Iowa, June 4, 1989
On June 4, 1989 at about 10:00 pm local time, a amateur-built BD-4, registered N373TC, was substantially damaged in an accident near Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Cedar Rapids airport). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
PREMATURE LIFT-OFF AND INADVERTENT STALL BY THE PILOT. A LOSS OF DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AND AN INADVERTENT GROUND SWERVE BY THE PILOT WERE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 4, 1989 · about 10:00 pm local time
- Place
- Cedar Rapids, Iowa · Cedar Rapids · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built BD-4
- Registration
- N373TC · no longer on the register · serial 373
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER MAKING TWO PRACTICE VFR APPROACHES WITHOUT TOUCHDOWN, THE PILOT REQUESTED A FULL STOP LANDING. HE SAID THE AIRCRAFT BOUNCED AND HE LOST RUNWAY ALIGNMENT, SO HE ELECTED TO GO-AROUND. ALSO, HE SAID THAT AT ABOUT 20 FT AGL, HE LOST CONTROL OF THE ACFT, IT STALLED, THEN IT ROLLED INVERTED AND COLLIDED WITH THE TERRAIN. THE PILOT SUFFERED A BROKEN ARM. HE HAD ACCUMULATED A TOTAL FLIGHT TIME OF 86 HRS, OF WHICH, TWO HRS WERE IN THIS TAILWHEEL CONFIGURED, HOME-BUILT AIRCRAFT. THIS WAS A FLIGHT TO ESTABLISH THE FLIGHT CHARACTERISTICS OF THE AIRCRAFT. THE PILOT HAD TWO HRS FLIGHT TIME IN THIS MAKE AND MODEL OF AIRCRAFT.
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
- Flight time: 86 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 6 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 52 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 21, 1989; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-B1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CID Cedar Rapids IA at 9:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 7,000 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 25,000 ft; scat at 4,500 ft
- Temperature: 73°F (23°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:08 pm from CID, 1 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.