- Date
- September 14, 1985, 16:27 local (21:27 UTC)
- Place
- Paducah, KY
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N30BLLaux Pitts S-1S
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850914044839A
- Case key
- 6639
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The aircraft was observed in the local area for several minutes. It was perfoming aerobatic maneuvers. One witness reported that it was lower than it usually was when it was perfoming these maneuvers. It was observed to do an inside loop, roll inverted and then enter a vertical climb. The engine power was reduced or the engine cut out and the aircraft entered an inverted spin. One witness stated that after 3 or 4 turns the aircraft entered a flat spin. The pilot was wearing a parachute but was found still strapped in the aircraft. It impacted inverted.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N30BL
- Reported as
- Laux Pitts S-1S
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- L-2
- Airframe hours
- 282
- Engine
- Lycoming HO-360-A1A, 208 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Jack Paxton
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 9, 1984 · 28 hours before
- Departed
- PAH · Paducah, KY
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 46
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Front
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,700 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 12,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 55 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PAH, 5 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.