- Date
- August 21, 1991, 14:22 local (19:22 UTC)
- Place
- Tomball, TX
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N3673QBeech A23-24
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 24, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Case key
- 23389
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 total loss of engine power for undetermined reasons. A factor in the accident was the unsuitable terrain at the pilot's disposal.
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
A CFI and his rated student were departing their home base on a local instrument training and aircraft familiarization flight. After leveling at 1500 feet, the engine suddenly, and without warning, lost power. The CFI took over the controls and performed the emergency procedures for an engine restart, while searching for a suitable field for a forced landing. The airplane flew under power lines, touched down on a busy highway, went through a barbed wire fence, collided with a ditch, and came to rest in an open pasture. On site investigation and a limited teardown inspection of the engine confirmed that the loss of power was not due to internal failure of the engine. The nature or cause of the power loss could not be determined or duplicated.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3673Q
- Reported as
- Beech A23-24
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- MA-264
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-360-A2B6, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Horizon Aviation
- Registered owner
- John A. Rolf
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · August 10, 1991 · 10 hours before
- Departed
- DWH · Tomball, TX
- Destination
- CXO · Conroe, TX
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
- 24
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Right
- Flight hours
- 1,012 total · 929 as pilot in command · 232 in the last 90 days · 71 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 95 °F, dew point 70 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg