- Date
- February 14, 1989, 22:45 local (Feb 15, 1989, 05:45 UTC)
- Place
- Safford, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 fatal
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N8814KCessna 340A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Status
- Completed · report July 22, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Safety recommendations
- Yes
- FAA report
- 19890214002349A
- Case key
- 26213
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 poor judgement and the resultant hypoxia sustained in the unpressurized airplane. Factors were: the malfunctioning pressurization system and the pilot's decision to continue operation with that known discrepancy.
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
During the night cross country flight at FL250, the pilot elected to leave the cockpit area and move to the rear of the aircraft to attend to physiological needs. Although oxygen was available in the cockpit, supplemental oxygen was not available in the rear. The aircraft was operated with a known pressurization system deficiency which limited the airplane to flight to 17,000 feet MSL while maintaining a cabin altitude of 10,000 feet. After 2 hours and 10 minutes, ATC declared the flight to be 'no radio'. At 3 hours and 57 minutes after departure, the airplane was plotted on radar in a descending left turn to ground impact. Fuel starvation resulted in power loss to the left engine. Propeller signatures indicated power on the right propeller at impact. The pilot's body was found in the aft cabin area on the aft cabin bulkhead.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8814K
- Reported as
- Cessna 340A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 340A-0988
- Engine
- Continental TSIO-520-NB, 310 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Sheldon L. Pollack Corp.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 16, 1980
- Departed
- FAT · Fresno, CA
- Destination
- LRU · Las Cruces, NM
- 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
- 62
- Certificates
- Private, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Rear
- Toxicology
- Performed
- Flight hours
- 10,000 total · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Night/dark
- Wind
- 270° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 6,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 52 °F, dew point 27 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- TUS, 48 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.