- Date
- October 15, 1989, 15:19 local (20:19 UTC)
- Place
- Axis, AL
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N56381Vultee BT-13
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 2, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19891015040229A
- Case key
- 8099
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The aircraft inadvertently entered a stall, when the pilot/passenger had a heart attack. A factor related to the accident was: lack of altitude for the pilot-in-command to recover from the stall.
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 registered owner of the airplane & a pilot rated friend were flying lazy 8 maneuvers at low altitude in the newly purchased wwii trainer. The owner had flown the airplane while serving in the military & was a current civilian instructor pilot. According to a witness, the airplane entered a descent, pitched up sharply, then entered a 'spiral' that continued until impact with the ground. The engine was reported to be operating at high power, when the airplane crashed. No preimpact part failure was found. A post mortem exam of the front seat occupant (the pilot's friend) revealed that he was fatally injured by blunt force injuries. However, the exam also revealed the front seat occupant had 80% (focal) narrowing of the proximal left anterior descending coronary artery, with acute thrombosis (agonal).
Aircraft
- Registration
- N56381
- Reported as
- Vultee BT-13
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 3432
- Engine
- P&W R985, 450 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Markward Reynolds
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
- 66
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Unknown
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 12,000 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 10,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- -0 °F, dew point -0 °F
- Observed at
- MOB, 20 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.