Amateur-built FLYING DUTCHMAN accident near Twin Falls, Idaho, August 23, 1987
On August 23, 1987 at about 7:19 pm local time, a amateur-built FLYING DUTCHMAN, registered N38Z, was destroyed in an accident near Twin Falls, Idaho (Joslin Field). It was a flight of an unrecorded kind 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 23, 1987 · about 7:19 pm local time
- Place
- Twin Falls, Idaho · Joslin Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built FLYING DUTCHMAN FLYING DUT
- Registration
- N38Z · registry record · serial LFD-13-4
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Flight of an unrecorded kind · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PURPOSE OF THE FLT WAS TO CHECK THE ACFT AFTER REPLACING A WOODEN PROP WITH AN ALL METAL PROP & TO PREPARE FOR ENTRY IN THE RENO AIR RACES. BFR ENTERING THE AIR RACES. THE PLT NEEDED TO DEMONSTRATE HIS ABILITY TO MAKE A 'BARREL ROLL' & TO MAKE 3 LNDGS. THERE WAS NO OPERABLE RADIO IN THE ACFT, SO THE PLT USED A HAND HELD VHF TRANSCEIVER. AFTER HE TOOK OFF, RADIO COMM WITH THE ACFT WAS LOST, SO TWR PSNL USED VISUAL LGT SIGNALS FOR CONTROL. THE PLT MADE 2 TOUCH-&-GO LNDGS & HAD BGN A DSCNDG TURN TO FINAL APCH (3RD PATTERN), WHEN THE ACFT ROLLED INVERTED & PLUNGED TO THE GND. ONE WITNESS THOUGHT THE ACFT SNAP ROLLED. ANOTHER SAID IT WAS SWAYING FM SIDE TO SIDE AS IT PLUNGED TO THE GND. IT CRASHED IN A NOSE DWN ATTITUDE & THERE WAS LITTLE MOVEMENT AFTER IMPACT. NO PREIMPACT PART PROBLEM WAS FND. THE PLT'S BLOOD WAS CHECKED AT 2 LABS. ONE CHECK SHOWED AN ALCOHOL LVL OF 0.238%; THE OTHER SHOWED A LVL OF 0.200%. A CHECK OF THE PLT'S URINE SHOWED AN ALCOHOL LVL OF 0.207%. THE ARPT ELEV WAS 4151 FT.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 2,571 hours in all; 62 in this make and model; 2,459 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 17, 1987
- Maximum gross weight: 825 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental C-90-8F (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: TWF at 7:13 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 8,703 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 20,000 ft; scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 7:25 pm from TWF, 1 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.