Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3 N45105
8 February 1986 · Middletown, California, United States · Fatal
Summary
On 8 February 1986 at about 23:46 local time, a Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3 registered N45105, operated by Stephen J. Johnson, was involved in an accident near Middletown, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.
The record
- Date
- at 23:46
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Middletown, California, United States
- Nearest airport
- 7M Ranch
- Coordinates
- 38.7800, -122.5791
- Aircraft
- Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3
- Registration
- N45105
- Category
- Airplane
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Stephen J. Johnson
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Middletown → Unknown
- Aircraft damage
- Destroyed
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- LAX86FA114
People
2 people died.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.
Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.
Read the full NTSB narrative
THE ACFT DEPARTED THE PRIVATELY OWNED DIRT STRIP ON A SALES DEMONSTRATION FLT. THE PIC OCCUPIED THE REAR SEAT AND THE PROSPECTIVE BUYER OCCUPIED THE FRONT SEAT. SHORTLY AFTER DEPARTING THE ENG BEGAN TO RUN ROUGH. THE ACFT ENTERED INTO A COURSE REVERSAL TURN. DURING THE TURN THE ACFT STALLED. THE PLT WAS ABLE TO RECOVER TO A WINGS LEVEL ATTITUDE PRIOR TO THE INITIAL GROUND CONTACT. AFTER GROUND CONTACT THE ACFT BOUNCED AND STRUCK THE GROUND IN A LEFT WING/NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE. THE LEFT WING FUEL TANK LINE RUPTURED AND A POST IMPACT FIRE BEGAN. THE ACFT ROTATED TO THE LEFT AND CAME TO REST RIGHT SIDE UP. THE OCCUPANTS WERE UNABLE TO EXIT THE BURNING ACFT. THE ACFT HAD NOT BEEN FLOWN WITHIN THE PRECEDING FOUR MONTHS. GROUND WITNESSES COULD NOT STATE IF EITHER PLT HAD PERFORMED A PREFLIGHT INSPECTION AND IF THE FUEL TANKS WERE DRAINED PRIOR TO FLT. FUEL SAMPLES TAKEN FROM THE FUEL SUPPLY TANK WERE FREE OF ANY CONTAMINATION. THE ENG EXAMINATION DISCLOSED NO EVIDENCE OF ANY PRE-IMPACT MALFUNCTION/FAILURE.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Naval Aircraft Factory N3N accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 Mar 1989 | Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3 | Phoenix, Arizona, United States | Coulliette, ROY M. | No injuries | - |
| 20 May 1989 | Naval Aircraft Factory N3N | Canaan, Connecticut, United States | Stanley Segalla | No injuries | - |
| 5 Aug 1983 | Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3-2939 | Lincoln, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 5 May 1990 | Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3 | Madera, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 14 Jun 1991 | Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3 | Deming, New Mexico, United States | Grigoriou, Christos I. | No injuries | - |
| 30 Apr 1992 | Naval Aircraft Factory N3N-3 | Montrose, Colorado, United States | Gerald M. Miller | Minor injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 Jun 1986 | Cessna 150 | Hesperia, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 1 Nov 1986 | Luscombe 8A | Half Moon Bay, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 28 Jun 1986 | Schleicher ASW-19 | Warner Springs, California, United States | Mark A. Miller | No injuries | - |
| 2 Nov 1986 | Learjet 24 | Lake Tahoe, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 30 Jun 1986 | Piper PA-18-150 | Ukiah, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 6 Nov 1986 | Beechcraft K35 | San Diego, California, United States | Dean Holt | Minor injuries | - |