Amateur-built Legacy Sport accident near Madras, Oregon, August 16, 2005
On August 16, 2005 at about 2:40 am local time, a amateur-built Legacy Sport, registered N359L, was substantially damaged in an accident near Madras, Oregon. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed while maneuvering which resulted in an inadvertent stall/spin and subsequent collision with the ground.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 16, 2005 · about 2:40 am local time
- Place
- Madras, Oregon · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built Legacy Sport
- Registration
- N359L · no longer on the register · serial LS-100
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The airplane was observed by a witness about 9 miles from the accident site at about 1,000 feet agl making a "knife edge turn." Another witness about 8 miles from the accident site observed the airplane "doing knife-edge straight flight that ended in pulling up and slowing dramatically into level flight." Two other witnesses "heard an airplane motor sputtering" and then "observed the plane going down in a spiraling motion towards the ground." Examination of the accident site by local authorities and an FAA inspector revealed evidence indicating the airplane impacted the ground in a vertical descent with no forward speed. Control continuity was confirmed from the control surfaces to the cockpit controls. Disassembly of the engine found no evidence of catastrophic engine failure.
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: 249 hours in all; 28 in this make and model; 42 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 160 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, March 1, 2005
- Maximum gross weight: 2,200 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Superior TNIO-360-B1AA (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RDM Redmond OR at 2:10 am
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 340° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 28°F (-2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.95 inHg
- Observation at 2:56 am from RDM, 15 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 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.