- Date
- January 16, 1990, 20:38 local (Jan 17, 1990, 02:38 UTC)
- Place
- Appleton, WI
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N87163Cessna 402B
- Weather
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report December 14, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900116000909A
- Case key
- 14521
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 pilot's decision to continue flight into known adverse weather conditions resulting in a windshear encounter with insufficient altitude for recovery. The existing adverse weather conditions were factors.
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 pilot received numerous weather briefings/updates before takeoff, which included two pilot reports of windshear by aircraft on the approach into Appleton. Shortly after takeoff convective SIGMET 1E was transmitted by the radar controller on the same frequency he was working N87163. This SIGMET called for embedded thunderstorms. About 10 min later, while being vectored for the approach into Appleton, the pilot was given heading deviations because of weather. The aircraft crashed 1/2 mi from the approach end of the runway. A witness whose residence is located between the om and mm for the ILS approach reported a 'huge downpour' with 'very strong winds' at the time of the accident. Wreckage examination revealed that all power controls for both engines were in the full forward position, and that the left and right main landing gear mounting trunnions were displaced upward into the wing fuel tanks.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N87163
- Reported as
- Cessna 402B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 402B1005
- Engine
- Continental TSIO-520-EB8, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 135
- Registered owner
- Superior Aviation, Inc.
- Departed
- CWA · Mosinee, WI
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- ATW · Outagamie County, runway 3, 7,001 × 150 ft
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
- 27
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 1,920 total · 425 in this make and model · 1,800 as pilot in command · 230 in the last 90 days · 65 in the last 30 days · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Instrument (IMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 60° at 5 knots
- Lowest ceiling
- 200 ft
- Temperature
- 32 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ATW, 1 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.