Amateur-built TA accident near Landenberg, Pennsylvania, June 20, 1984
On June 20, 1984 at about 11:35 pm local time, a amateur-built TA (ultralight), registered UNREG, was substantially damaged in an accident near Landenberg, Pennsylvania. It was a personal flight under ultralight rules (Part 103). 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- June 20, 1984 · about 11:35 pm local time
- Place
- Landenberg, Pennsylvania · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built TA
- Registration
- UNREG · no longer on the register
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · ultralight rules (Part 103)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT HAD PREVIOUSLY FLOWN 75 TO 80 HRS IN AN ULTRALIGHT CONTROLLED BY A COMBINATION OF WEIGHT-SHIFT & RUDDER. ON THE DAY OF THE ACCIDENT, HE & HIS PARTNER HAD PRACTICED A SERIES OF CROW HOPS IN A TERATORN TA. THE TERATORN TA WAS A 3-AXIS CONTROLLED ULTRALIGHT WHICH HAD STICK CONTROLLED SPOILERONS & ELEVATOR & A FOOT PEDAL ACTUATED RUDDER. THE PLT STATED THAT ON HIS LAST CROW HOP, HE WAS FLYING ABOUT 5 FT ABOVE THE GROUND ACROSS AN OPEN FIELD WHEN HE FOUND HIMSELF INADVERTENTLY HEADING TOWARD A SINGLE, 40 FT TREE. HE WAS UNABLE TO TURN AWAY & DECIDED TO FLY OVER THE TREE. A CLIMB WAS INITIATED. HOWEVER, AS THE ULTRALIGHT REACHED ABOUT TREETOP LEVEL, THE VEHICLE MUSHED, THEN THE RIGHT WING DROPPED & THE ULTRALIGHT IMPACTED THE GROUND. THIS WAS THE PLT'S 1ST FLT IN THIS AIRCRAFT, WHICH HE & HIS PARTNER HAD RECENTLY PURCHASED. HE HAD NOT RECEIVED DUAL INSTRUCTION IN EITHER A TWO-PLACE ULTRALIGHT OR A CERTIFICATED POWERED ACFT. 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
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 50 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 445 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 300 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 300° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; scat at 15,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:52 pm from ILG, 15 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.