- Date
- February 19, 1990, 14:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- College Park, MD
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N7958DBeech H35
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 4, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900219002409A
- Case key
- 11580
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The pilot's inadequate compensation for wind conditions. The adverse wind was a related factor.
Analysis
While on short final approach with 30 degrees of flaps and an airspeed of 80 mph, the acft encountered a downdraft. The acft contacted trees and descended to the terrain. The plt reported that when the accident occurred, local winds were shifting from 290 degs to 330 degs at 20 gusting to 30 knots. The apch to rwy 33 was over the trees & was known to be turbulent when gusty wind conditions existed.
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.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7958D
- Reported as
- Beech H35
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- D-5217
- Airframe hours
- 3,254
- Engine
- Continental IO-470-G, 240 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Charles W. Branche
- Registered owner
- Charles W Branche
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 17, 1989 · 22 hours before
- Airport
- College Park, runway 33, 2,740 × 40 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
- 67
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 983 total · 734 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 20 knots, gusting 30
- Visibility
- 12 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 52 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.