Lee Aviation LLC JA30 SUPERSTOL accident near Evanston, Wyoming, May 9, 2025
On May 9, 2025 at about 4:20 pm local time, a 2014 Lee Aviation LLC JA30 SUPERSTOL, an amateur-built aircraft,, registered N128EL, was substantially damaged in an accident during initial climb near Evanston, Wyoming (Evanston-Uinta County Burns Fl airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. 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
- May 9, 2025 · about 4:20 pm local time
- Place
- Evanston, Wyoming · Evanston-Uinta County Burns Fl · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Lee Aviation LLC JA30 SUPERSTOL, built 2014, amateur-built
- Registration
- N128EL · registry record · serial JA386-06-14
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative preliminary · quoted from the NTSB record
On May 9, 2025, about 1020 mountain daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Just Aircraft Superstol, N128EL, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Evanston, Wyoming. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot reported that shortly after departing runway 23 at the Evanston-Uinta County Burns Field (EVW), Evanston, Wyoming, and while in the crosswind leg of the traffic pattern about 250 ft above ground level, a puff of smoke came out from the top of the engine cowling followed by a total loss of engine power. The pilot advanced the throttle, pitched the nose down, and turned the airplane left towards runway 5. Subsequently, the pilot realized he was not going to make it to the runway and initiated a forced landing on a taxiway. The airplane landed hard and short of the taxiway on a hillside and sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The airplane was recovered to a secure location for further examination.
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
- Loss of engine power (total) during initial climb defining event
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 494 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, January 27, 2025
- Maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 23, 7,300 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 020° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.47 inHg
- Observation at 10:53 am from KEVW
Weather report (METAR): KEVW 091653Z AUTO 02009KT 10SM CLR 17/M01 A3047 RMK AO2 SLP244 T01671006
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The NTSB has not released the docket for this case yet. The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), is usually released when the investigation is nearly complete, and the list here is refreshed when it appears. Check 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.