- Date
- September 11, 1991, 11:50 local (17:50 UTC)
- Place
- Ruidoso, NM
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N4VHButler Aerostar 600
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 31, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910911039239A
- Case key
- 18034
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
Loss of control in flight after to the cabin door opened inadvertently during takeoff run.
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
While departing on a cross country flight the aircraft was observed to have an abnormally long takeoff roll and to rotate abruptly to a higher than normal nose attitude. Initial climb was followed by settling with a high nose attitude and the aircraft crashed approximately one mile beyond the departure end of the runway. The main cabin door was found in the unlocked position and the lower half was found near the beginning of the wreckage path with impact damage. The top half was found further down the wreckage path and had sustained fire damage. The Aerostar has an observed drag and pitch performance degradation if the cabin door opens during takeoff run.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4VH
- Reported as
- Butler Aerostar 600 (AEROSTAR 6)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 60-0055-125
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-F1A5, 290 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Franklin, Jimmy M.
- Registered owner
- Franklin, Jimmy M.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 2, 2000
- Destination
- RNO · Reno, NV
- Airport
- SRR · Sierra Blanca Regional, runway 24, 8,100 × 100 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
- 45
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Expired
- Seat
- Left
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 5,600 total · 75 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- SRR, 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.