Amateur-built KITFOX III accident near Cadiz, Ohio, December 4, 1994
On December 4, 1994 at about 5:10 pm local time, a amateur-built KITFOX III, registered N345WM, was destroyed in an accident near Cadiz, Ohio (Tappan Airpark 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 failure of the pilot to maintain airspeed which resulted in an inadvertent stall, and uncontrolled collision with the ground. A factor was pilot's lack of total experience in this make and model.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 4, 1994 · about 5:10 pm local time
- Place
- Cadiz, Ohio · Tappan Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built KITFOX III
- Registration
- N345WM · no longer on the register · serial 906
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE KIT BUILT AIRPLANE WAS OBSERVED TO DEPART ON A GRASS RUNWAY, AND AT AN ALTITUDE OF ABOUT 150 TO 200 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND, THE LEFT WING DROPPED AND THE AIRPLANE DESCENDED AND IMPACTED THE GROUND. ACCORDING TO A WITNESS, 'THE (AIRPLANE) STARTED TO TAKEOFF, EVERYTHING APPEARED NORMAL. THE (AIRPLANE) STARTED TO CLIMB OUT NORMALLY. THEN I SAW THE LEFT WING DROP... I HEARD THE CRASH.' THE EXAMINATION DID NOT DISCLOSE EVIDENCE OF MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION. THE MANUFACTURER OF THE AIRPLANE DESCRIBED THE STALL CHARACTERISTICS AS '...GENTLE AND PREDICTABLE, BUT OFFER LITTLE WARNING....'
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; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,000 hours in all; 16 in this make and model; 16 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: None (expired)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 16 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 20, 1994; 16 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,050 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Rotax 582LC (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 7OH0 at 5:15 pm
- Destination: OI03 St. Clairsville OH
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 9, 2,150 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°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.