- Date
- August 19, 1990, 12:15 local (19:15 UTC)
- Place
- Tucson, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N71330Luscombe 8A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 28, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900819034029A
- Case key
- 26899
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 pilot to maintain proper pitch attitude and airspeed to avoid an aerodynamic 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
A Luscombe 8A loss control and collided with trees. The pilot indicated that he and a passenger were conducting an aerial search for the passenger's missing radio controlled model airplane. The model airplane was spotted from about 1,500 feet AGL. The pilot was making a low pass to pinpoint the location of the model airplane. The pilot stated, 'when I made the final turn to fly by the model I stalled into a grove of mesquite trees.' The aircraft descended and struck a tree with the right wing. The aircraft rotated 180 degrees and struck the ground tail first.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N71330
- Reported as
- Luscombe 8A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 2757
- Airframe hours
- 1,956
- Engine
- Continental A 65-8, 65 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Semrad, James V.
- Registered owner
- Semrad, James V
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 17, 1989 · 85 hours before
- Airport
- RYN · Ryan Field
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
- 49
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 860 total · 175 in this make and model · 750 as pilot in command · 37 in the last 90 days · 21 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 240° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 60 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 99 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.