Amateur-built SKYBOLT accident near Moorestown, New Jersey, August 27, 1986
On August 27, 1986 at about 9:25 pm local time, a amateur-built SKYBOLT, registered N8FP, was destroyed in an accident near Moorestown, New Jersey. It was a personal flight 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
- August 27, 1986 · about 9:25 pm local time
- Place
- Moorestown, New Jersey
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SKYBOLT
- Registration
- N8FP · no longer on the register · serial 1
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PASSONNO SKYBOLT WAS OBSERVED TO RECOVER FROM A LOOP AND THEN THE TAIL SURFACES STARTED TO SHAKE. THE ACFT THEN DESCENDED TO THE GROUND AND WAS DESTROYED BY IMPACT. EXAMINATION OF VARIOUS HORIZONTAL STABILIZER AND ELEVATOR COMPONENTS SHOWED THAT THE FAILURES WERE DUE TO OVERSTRESS AND SHEER FORCES. IT WAS NOTED THAT BOTH THE LEFT AND RIGHT HORIZONTAL STABILIZERS HAD BEEN SUBJECTED TO A DOWNWARD FORCE. IN ADDITION THE INVESTIGATION DISCLOSED THAT THE ELEVATOR HAD NOT BEEN MODIFIED IN ACCORDANCE WITH DESIGN RECOMMENDATION REGARDING THE INSTALLATION OF LARGER ENGS.
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: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all; 20 in this make and model; 25 in the last 30 days; 3,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 390 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 15, 1986; 14 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,000 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-D4A5 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PNE Philadelphi PA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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.