- Date
- August 15, 1985, 23:20 local (Aug 16, 1985, 05:20 UTC)
- Place
- Billings, MT
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N44NBeech E18S
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19850815041609A
- Case key
- 16750
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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 plt stated that he encountered a 'wind draft' and the acft was struck by lightning. The rt eng mount failed and the rt eng was deflected downward. Plt was unable to maintain alt and executed a forced landing in an open field. Post crash exam of the welded cluster eng mount revealed evidence of an overload type failure.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N44N
- Reported as
- Beech E18S
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- BA109
- Airframe hours
- 12,624
- Engine
- P&W R-985-AN14B, 450 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 135
- Registered owner
- Sky Freighter, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 15, 1985 · 46 hours before
- Departed
- HLN · Helena, MT
- Destination
- BIL · Billings, MT
- Flight plan
- IFR
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
- 49
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 18,525 total · 8,352 in this make and model · 18,300 as pilot in command · 216 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 330° at 30 knots, gusting 40
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 5,000 ft unknown
- Temperature
- 50 °F, dew point 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.