- Date
- May 22, 1989, 17:15 local (22:15 UTC)
- Place
- Mc Henry, IL
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N32GRRuschke Starduster TOO
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 11, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890522012079A
- Case key
- 14184
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 flying pilots failure to maintain airspeed during an ostentatious display resulting in an inadvertent stall and subsequent collision with terrain.
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 accident airplane struck terrain while in an out of control descent shortly after takeoff on a personal flight. Witnesses reported a normal takeoff and initial climb and then the airplane rotated to a near vertical climb followed by a 'hammerhead maneuver' to the left. It then descended into the ground.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N32GR
- Reported as
- Ruschke Starduster TOO (STARDUSTER)
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- GR-1947
- Engine
- Lycoming O-320-A2B, 150 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Lloyd E. Hughes
- Registered owner
- Hughes Lloyd E
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 11, 1989
- Departed
- 10C · Mchenry, IL
- Airport
- 10C · Greenwood/Wonder Lake, runway 9, 3,100 × 36 ft, asphalt
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
- 51
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Flight engineer
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Rear
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 10,000 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 15,000 ft broken
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- IKK, 45 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.