Amateur-built SONERAI II accident near Middlebury, Connecticut, March 1, 1986
On March 1, 1986 at about 4:45 pm local time, a amateur-built SONERAI II, registered N27EF, was substantially damaged in an accident near Middlebury, Connecticut. 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).
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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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 1, 1986 · about 4:45 pm local time
- Place
- Middlebury, Connecticut
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built SONERAI II
- Registration
- N27EF · registry record · serial 1476L
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT REPORTED THAT THE ACFT WAS SLOW TO CLIMB AFTER TAKEOFF AND HAD REACHED AN ALT OF ONLY 100' AGL AT THE END OF THE 5000' LOND RWY. THE PLT CONTINUED TO STATE THE ACFT WAS UNABLE TO CLEAR RISING TERRAIN APRX 1/2 MILE FROM THE ARPT. THE ACFT CONTACTED THE ROCKY TERRAIN WHICH RESULTED IN THE NOSE GEAR AND LEFT MAIN GEAR COLLAPSING. A NEW PROPELLER WAS INSTALLED ON THE ACFT PRIOR TO THIS FLIGHT, HOWEVER, THE PLT CITED NO MECHANICAL FAILURE/MALFUNCTION.
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: 1,250 hours in all; 26 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 5 in the last 30 days; 1,156 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 27 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, July 16, 1985; 27 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 800 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Volkswagen UNK (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: OXC Middlebury CT at 4:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 15 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 19°F (-7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Other NTSB records under N27EF the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number NYC86FNE02.