# Accident 20230517008279A: Beech E-90, Winslow, AR, May 17, 2023

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 17, 2023, 12:37 local time
- Place: Winslow, AR
- Airport: Drake Field
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.8424° N, 94.1482° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.8424&lon=-94.1482&mi=10
- Aircraft: N522MJ, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N522MJ) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Beech E-90 (registry code 1152914, https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-e-90) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BEECH E-90
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN23FA190](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN23FA190) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20230517008279A

## Narrative

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

ON MAY 17, 2023, ABOUT 1127 CENTRAL DAYLIGHT TIME, A BEECH E-90 AIRPLANE, BEING OPERATED AS A TITLE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (CFR) PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT, DEPARTED THE UNIVERSITY-OXFORD AIRPORT (UOX), OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI AND PROCEEDED ON A DIRECT COURSE TOWARD DRAKE FIELD (FYV). THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED ON A STRAIGHT HEADING TOWARD FYV UNTIL 1230 WHEN THE AIRPLANE MADE A TURN TO THE LEFT. AT THIS TIME, THE AIRPLANE WAS ABOUT 6,100 FT MSL. THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED DESCENDING AND FLEW TOWARD VIXMU, WHICH WAS AN INTERMEDIATE/INITIAL APPROACH FIX (IF/IAF) FOR THE RNAV RUNWAY 34 APPROACH TO FYV. THE AIRPLANE TURNED TO THE RIGHT BEFORE REACHING VIXMU, AND THEN TURNED SLIGHTLY TO THE LEFT PLACING IT ON A 45° INTERCEPT FOR THE APPROACH SEGMENT BETWEEN VIXMU AND OPVIE, WHICH WAS THE FINAL APPROACH FIX. DURING THIS TIME, THE AIRPLANE DESCENDED TO ABOUT 3,525 FT, THEN CLIMBED BACK UP TO 3,950 FT. WHEN IT HAD REACHED 3,950 FT IT BEGAN A RIGHT TURN, PRESUMABLY TO INTERCEPT THE INBOUND APPROACH COURSE, BUT THE AIRPLANE CONTINUED IN THE RIGHT TURN AND DESCENDED. THE FINAL ADS-B DATA POINT, ABOUT 0.1 MILES FROM THE ACCIDENT SITE, WAS AT 1236:26 WITH A RECORDED ALTITUDE OF 2,900 FT MSL. THE CALCULATED DESCENT RATE BETWEEN THE FINAL TWO DATA POINTS WAS IN EXCESS OF 15,000 FT/MIN. THE AIRPLANE IMPACTED WOODED TERRAIN, DESCENDING THROUGH AN OPENING IN THE TREE CANOPY. BASED ON THE DAMAGE TO THE SURROUNDING TREES, THE IMPACT SIGNATURES AND THE AIRPLANE DAMAGE, THE DESCENT WAS NEAR VERTICAL. BOTH ENGINES AND PROPELLERS WERE EMBEDDED IN THE TERRAIN, AND THE ENTIRE AIRPLANE WAS FRAGMENTED. ALL MAJOR AIRFRAME AND FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES WERE IDENTIFIED IN THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY OF THE IMPACT LOCATION. THE PILOT WAS FATALLY INJURED.

## 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 CEN23FA190](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN23FA190), May 17, 2023: Beech E-90 (N522MJ), Winslow, AR, destroyed, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s poor preflight decision to depart into known instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) without a functional autopilot system, which resulted in spatial disorientation and his failure to…

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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