- Date
- February 9, 1990, 11:14 local (18:14 UTC)
- Place
- Rapid City, SD
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious, 2 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N64MDMitsubishi MU-2B-60
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 30, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900209001819A
- Case key
- 17818
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
Failure of the pilot to maintain adequate airspeed (VMC), which resulted in a loss of aircraft control. A factor related to the accident was: fatigue failure of a coupling shaft in the #1 engine, which resulted in loss of power in that engine.
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
Witnesses rprtd that shortly after lift-off, the acft entered an unusually steep, nose high attitude, while still at low airspeed. One witness (an ATP plt) rprtd the acft attained an alt of aprx 75 to 100 ft and appeared to slow down and enter a VMC roll, then it crashed. Impact occurred in an inverted, nose down attitude, left of the rwy. An investigation revealed that a coupling shaft (pn 865888-3) had failed in the left eng & the left prop had feathered. A metallurical exam of the coupling showed evidence of fatigue.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N64MD
- Reported as
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-60
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 747SA
- Airframe hours
- 4,382
- Engine
- Garrett TPE-331-10, 715 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Part 135
- Operator
- Aeromedical Services Intl, doing business as Associated Jet Charter
- Registered owner
- Chancellor Aircraft Leasing
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- AAIP · February 4, 1990 · 14 hours before
- Departed
- RAP
- Destination
- CYWG · Manitoba,Canada, OF
- Flight plan
- VFR/IFR
- Airport
- RAP · Rapid City Regional, runway 14, 8,701 × 150 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
- 46
- Certificates
- Airline transport, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane, Helicopter
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 5,985 total · 291 in this make and model · 4,185 as pilot in command · 140 in the last 90 days · 53 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 170° at 14 knots
- Visibility
- 35 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 32 °F, dew point 18 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RAP, 5 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.