- Date
- May 9, 1989, 10:00 local (17:00 UTC)
- Place
- Sacramento, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N7238ABeech A36
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report June 28, 1991
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890509011179A
- Case key
- 26367
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 number four piston assembly. A factor related to the accident was: the soft/uneven terrain in the emergency landing area.
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 a climb to alt, the eng suddenly made a loud grinding sound & began to vibrate. The plt made a forced landing in a cultivated field. While landing, the acft encountered furrows in the terrain & the gear collapsed. An inspn of the eng revealed the #4 piston had failed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N7238A
- Reported as
- Beech A36
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- E-2254
- Airframe hours
- 738
- Engine
- Continental IO-550-B, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Woodland Aviation
- Registered owner
- Fta Ltd
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 30, 1989 · 35 hours before
- Departed
- SAC · Sacramento, CA
- Destination
- 085 · Redding, CA
- 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
- 35
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,560 total · 40 in this make and model · 1,407 as pilot in command · 179 in the last 90 days · 60 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 12 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 1,400 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 50 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.