Amateur-built BUCCANEER accident near Mountville, Pennsylvania, October 24, 1983
On October 24, 1983 at about 9:15 pm local time, a amateur-built BUCCANEER (ultralight), registered UNREG, was substantially damaged in an accident near Mountville, Pennsylvania. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under ultralight rules (Part 103). 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
- October 24, 1983 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Mountville, Pennsylvania · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built BUCCANEER
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register · serial 9
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · ultralight rules (Part 103)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AMPHIBIAN ULTRALIGHT VEHICLE WAS BEING FLOWN ON A SERIES OF FLT TESTS AFTER BEING ASSEMBLED. AT APRX 1615 EDT, THE PLT TOOK OFF & WAS FOLLOWED BY ANOTHER PLT IN ANOTHER ULTRALIGHT VEHICLE FOR OBSERVATION PURPOSES. NO UNDESIRABLE FLT CHARACTERISTIC WAS NOTED. AT APRX 1650 EDT, THE CHASE PLT RETURNED TO THE AIRPORT WHILE THE PLT ON THE TEST FLT REMAINED AIRBORNE. AT ABOUT 1715 EDT, A WITNESS OBSERVED THE ULTRALIGHT MANEUVERING. ACCORDING TO HIM, THE VEHICLE WAS FAIRLY HIGH, SPINNING AROUND AT A FAST RATE & DESCENDING RAPIDLY UNTIL IT LEVELED OFF AT AN ALT OF BETWEEN 400 TO 500 FT AGL. ANOTHER WITNESS SAID HE WAS WATCHING THE ULTRALIGHT & SAW IT DIP & TURN A FEW TIMES, THEN THE WINGS FOLDED UP & THE VEHICLE CRASHED. ALL COMPONENTS OF THE CRAFT WERE ACCOUNTED FOR. BOTH WINGS HAD THE SAME KIND OF DAMAGE CHARACTERISTICS, BUT THE RIGHT WING & STRUTS WERE DAMAGED TO A GREATER DEGREE. NO PREIMPACT/ MECHANICAL FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND.
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: 1,000 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 554 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 277 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 89N Mountville PA at 8:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 2,300 ft; not recorded at 2,300 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from LNS, 10 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 UNREG 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.