19850107000359A

Accident · Destroyed

FAA accident report · Beech B35 · Death Valley, CA · January 7, 1985

Date
January 7, 1985 · 10:50 local
Place
Death Valley, CA
Phase of flight
Normal Cruise
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Destroyed
Aircraft
N8889A
NTSB investigation
NTSBLAX85FA100
Reported as
Beech B35
Reported engine
Continental E2254
People aboard
3
Fatal injuries
3
Pilot’s flight hours
400 total10 in this make and model15 in the last 90 days

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Encountered steep mountainous terrain and adverse weather. Impacted a mountainside. Lacked current weather report.

As the FAA filed it

ENCOUNTERED STEEP MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN AND ADVERSE WEATHER. IMPACTED A MOUNTAINSIDE. LACKED CURRENT WEATHER REPORT.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.