Amateur-built VM-1 accident near Jobstown, New Jersey, January 17, 1987
On January 17, 1987 at about 9:00 pm local time, a amateur-built VM-1, registered N4047A, was destroyed in an accident near Jobstown, New Jersey (Red Wing airport). 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
- January 17, 1987 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Jobstown, New Jersey · Red Wing
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built VM-1
- Registration
- N4047A · no longer on the register · serial VM1-5701
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS OBSERVED TO MAKE A LOW PASS OVER THE ARPT, THEN CONT BEYOND THE DEPARTURE END WHERE THE ACFT FLEW INTO A ROW OF TREES. WITNESSES RPRTD THE SUN WAS LOW & THAT THE PLT WAS FLYING TOWARD THE SUN. IMPACT WITH THE TREES OCCURRED ABOUT 1200 FT FROM THE DEPARTURE END OF RWY 29, NEAR THE EXTENDED CENTERLINE OF THE RWY. THE PLT PREVIOUSLY HELD A PRIVATE PLT CERTIFICATE WITH A SINGLE ENG RATING. ON 8/8/86, HIS PRIVATE CERTIFICATE WAS SUSPENDED AFTER A VIOLATION OF LOW FLYING. AS OF 8/12/88, FAA RECORDS SHOWED HE HAD LOGGED 55 HRS IN THE MARRONE VM-1. HIS LAST MED CERT WAS DATED 9/18/84; AT THAT TIME, HE RPRTD A TOTAL FLT TIME OF 700 HRS.
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
- Flight time: 700 hours in all; 55 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded, August 12, 1986
- Maximum gross weight: 803 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental A-65 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: N14 Lumberton NJ
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 29, 2,064 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 26,000 ft
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 9°F (-13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:00 pm from WRI, 515 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.