# Accident 20020701013949A: Beech H18, Tatum, NM, July 1, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: July 1, 2002, 13:10 local time
- Place: Tatum, NM
- Damage: No damage
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.4414° N, 103.6044° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.4414&lon=-103.6044&mi=10
- Aircraft: N835K, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N835K-2003-05-07) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Beech H-18 (registry code 1151012, https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-h-18) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Pratt & Whitney R-985 series (registry code 52008, https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r-985-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BEECH H18
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW02FA195](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW02FA195) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020701013949A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) OBSERVERS SAW THE PLANE DESCENDING AND THEY THOUGHT IT WAS LANDING. INVESTIGATIONS SHOWED THAT BOTH ENGINES WERE OPERATING, THE LANDING GEAR WAS UP AND THE FLAPS WERE STOWED. THE AIRCRAFT HAD A LOW SINK RATE AND CONTACTED THE GROUND AT CRUISE SPEED OR FASTER. THE LEFT WING BROKE OFF AS THE PROPELLER BLADES WERE SHRED AND THE AIRCRAFT BOUNCED INTO THE AIR MOVING TOWARD SOME UTILITY LINES. THE RIGHT WING-TIP AND THE RIGHT WING ROOT WERE SEVERED BY THE UTILITY WIRES. THE FUSELAGE SLID TO A STOP 650 FEET FROM THE FIRST POINT OF IMPACT. THE ENGINES AND THE BODY OF THE PILOT, STILL STRAPPED TO THE SEAT, WERE FUTHER DOWN THE 1285 FOOT LONG DEBRIS FIELD. INCAPACITATION OF THE PILOT WOULD EXPLAIN WHY THIS AIRPLANE, IN A CRUISE CONFIGURATION, WAS ALLOWED TO DESCEND UNTIL IT CONTACTED THE GROUND IN A DESERT OF NM, ALONG THE FLIGHT ROUTE FROM TAOS NM TO ODESSA TX.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB FTW02FA195](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW02FA195), Jul 1, 2002: Beech H-18 (N835K), Tatum, NM, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The failure of the pilot to maintain clearance.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft 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. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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