- Date
- March 30, 1988, 19:50 local (Mar 31, 1988, 01:50 UTC)
- Place
- Onamia, MN
- Injuries
- 2 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N2766TBeech 35-C33A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed · report January 16, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19880330009769A
- Case key
- 13937
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
Pilot's poor judgement in continuing VFR flight into IMC conditions, and his subsequent disorientation and failure to maintain aircraft control.
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.
Analysis
The acft was en route on a business flt when a ground witness observed it flying 'in and out of clouds in snow showers' shortly before the accident. Local residents heard the eng as the acft passed low overhead, then saw the acft just before it crashed in a steep nose down, left wing low attitude. Witnesses rprtd that large wet snow flakes were falling & the visibility was about 1-1/2 mi in snow and fog. The plt had gotten a weather briefing; the area forecast included flt precautions for turbulence & icing conditions along the route. The private plt was not instrument rated; he had logged 124 hrs of flt time, of which 4.2 hrs were logged as instrument time. He had logged only 2.2 hrs in complex acft, which included the check-out in this acft. The 2nd occupant in the acft was also a plt.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N2766T
- Reported as
- Beech 35-C33A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- CE-157
- Airframe hours
- 3,231
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-B, 285 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Bemidji Airlines
- Registered owner
- Bemidji Airlines
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · October 26, 1987 · 128 hours before
- Departed
- BJI · Bemidji, MN
- Destination
- MSP · Minneapolis, MN
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
- 26
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 124 total · 2 in this make and model · 82 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Temperature
- 30 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.