- Date
- June 12, 1983, 12:30 local (16:30 UTC)
- Place
- Morristown, NJ
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N11BDDial-Thorp T-18
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19830612024729A
- Case key
- 35106
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 plt had been active in organizing an air show, but was not considered a participant. However, his home built acft was on static display. On the 2nd day of the show, the chairman of the event gave him permission to do a fly-by. Subsequently, he initiated a pass down rwy 23 at an altitude of aprx 150 ft AGL. During the pass, the acft began to porpoise, made 2 oscillations about the lateral axis, then began to disintegrate. While still in flt, the wings, flaps, vertical stabilizer, rudder, right horizontal stabilizer & parts of the canopy separated. The fuselage then rolled slightly to the right, crashed & burned. The acft was not certificated for aerobatic flt. The manufacturer of the kit (from which the acft was built) recommended the cruise speed (vno) be 172 mph & the never exceed speed (vne) be 210 mph. The acft's airspeed indicator was calibrated in KTS & was marked with the vno & vne at 170 & 213 KTS (196 & 244 mph), respectively. Pseudoephedrine & chlorpheniramine found in plt's urine.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N11BD
- Reported as
- Dial-Thorp T-18
- Category
- Airplane, amateur-built
- Serial number
- 401
- Airframe hours
- 900
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-320-B1A, 160 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- James Mario Dyer
- Registered owner
- Registration Pending
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 7, 1983 · 55 hours before
- Airport
- MMU · Morristown, runway 23, 6,000 × 150 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
- 25
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- MMU, 1 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.