Amateur-built RV-6 accident near Grand Canyon, Arizona, March 11, 2011
On March 11, 2011 at about 4:00 pm local time, a amateur-built RV-6, registered N650RV, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering near Grand Canyon, Arizona. 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 pilot's intentional flight into terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 11, 2011 · about 4:00 pm local time · cases in 2011
- Place
- Grand Canyon, Arizona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built RV-6
- Registration
- N650RV · registry record · serial 23971
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Local law enforcement representatives reported that the pilot was involved in an argument with his wife the day before the accident. They further reported that early in the morning on the day of the accident, the pilot told an individual, referred to by the police as his girlfriend, that he was going to kill himself. About 0615, the pilot was seen at the airport where the airplane was based, and, by the time that the airport's air traffic control tower began operation at 0630, the pilot had already departed in the airplane. The pilot flew to another airport, landed, purchased 10 gallons of fuel, and departed about 0820. According to recorded radar track data, the airplane flew northwest for about 10 minutes before radar contact was lost. A search was conducted; however, the airplane was not immediately located and was classified as missing until May 21, 2015, when hikers found the wreckage. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed damage consistent with controlled flight into terrain. The pilot's remains were located in the wreckage. According to the autopsy report, the pilot's cause of death was multiple blunt force injuries with the manner of death being suicide.
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
What happened, in order
- Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during maneuvering defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Miscellaneous › Intentional act › Suicide › Pilot
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instructor: gyroplane; instructor: helicopter; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 1,900 hours in all; 100 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: unk
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 1,600 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1A (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: KGCN Tusayan AZ at 3:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.17 inHg
- Observation at 3:54 pm from KGCN
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
7 documents, released by the NTSB on October 7, 2011. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Area Map | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 2 | Search Tracks | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Grand Canyon Weather, March 11, 2011 | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Police Report Summary | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 5 | Release of Aircraft Wreckage, NTSB Form 6120.15 | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 6 | Airframe and Engine Exam Report | PDF, 10 pages | View Download |
| 7 | Changes to Factual Report 03/07/2016 | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N650RV on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Engine: Lycoming O-360-A1A 601 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Grand Canyon Ntl Park Airport · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Arizona 2,985 since 1982 · 468 in the last ten years
- Arizona 8,431 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/WPR11FA490.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.